Implications of Commercial Space Travel for Health

January 15, 2013
Note: Marlene Grenon, MD, Assistant Professor, Department of Surgery, received support for this research through the CTSI K Scholars program. She joined the program in July, 2011.
 
By Leland Kim via UCSF.edu

Just a half-century after the first human ventured into space, commercial space travel — or “space tourism” — is quickly becoming a reality. A new UCSF study looks at the health implications of flying into outer space and suggests establishing health screening standards for private citizens who want to blast off.

“We all have questions from patients related to air travel,” said lead author S. Marlene Grenon, MD, MS, assistant professor of surgery at the UCSF Division of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery, and a researcher at the San Francisco VA Medical Center. “In the short future, we may be getting questions from our patients about space travel.”

Research on the impact of space on the human body started in 1957, when the U.S.S.R. initiated the space race with the launch of Sputnik 1, the first human-made object to be placed in orbit. Over the years, UCSF researchers have studied the impact of space on humans showing the effects — both physically and mentally — are profound.

“In a zero-gravity outer-space environment, humans go through very unique physiological changes,” Grenon explained. “They experience bone loss, muscle atrophy, increased risk of certain heart problems, decrease in immune function, kidney stones and motion sickness. These significant changes in the body and how it functions need to be considered.”

The study, published Thursday in the British Medical Journal, highlights the lack of understanding most physicians have about the impact of space travel on the body.

Read more at UCSF.edu