Space Flight Simulation to Study Effects of Micro-gravity Through Bed Rest
Condition: Weightlessness
Study type: Observational

Summary: 
      Space flight simulation study to study effects of microgravity through bedrest coupled with
      flight exercise counter-measures.
    

Detailed description: 
      Flight Analogs/Bed Rest Research Project (FA/BRRP) provides NASA with a ground-based research
      platform to complement space research. By mimicking on Earth the conditions of weightlessness
      experienced by the human body in space, NASA can test and refine scientific theories and
      procedures to develop countermeasures to protect humans from the effects of the space travel.
      The use of ground analogs, such as bed rest, are essential because access to the resources
      required to conduct studies in space is very limited, and the expense of studies
      significantly greater than those conducted using flight analogs. Future space exploration
      will challenge NASA to answer many critical questions about how humans can live and work for
      extended missions away from Earth.

      Flight analog testing is critical to NASA to validate countermeasures, given the few
      opportunities to use flight platforms as the Shuttle retires; also, the US has only 1-2
      International Space Station (ISS) crewmembers per Expedition. The Flight Analogs/Bed Rest
      Research Project is one way NASA will devise ways to ensure astronaut safety and productivity
      on extended missions to the moon and Mars.

      In the Flight Analogs Project (FAP), volunteers spend many days in a controlled research
      environment in the Flight Analog Research Unit (FARU) in Galveston, TX. In the current
      campaigns, volunteers will undergo three phases in the bedrest projects: 1) pre-bedrest
      baseline testing, 2) a bedrest phase, and 3) the recovery period. Bed rest results in many
      physiologic changes similar to those seen in astronauts. Pre bed rest is used to gather
      baseline data against which the bed-rest phase data will be compared. Researchers then
      monitor how the volunteers' bodies change over the course of the study and how quickly they
      recover once they are allowed to resume normal activities. Post bed rest is used to monitor
      recovery from bed rest. In longer campaigns, return to the unit for follow-up testing may be
      requested after 1, 3, 6, and/or 12 months.

      THE COUNTERMEASURE AND FUNCTIONAL TESTING STUDY (CFT) will test the effectiveness of exercise
      on loss of muscle, bone and cardiovascular function. Participants will perform an exercise
      program in a system called the standalone Zero Gravity Locomotion Simulator (sZLS), a
      "vertical treadmill" that removes the weight from the long axis of the body to simulate
      exercise as it is done in space. Resistance (weight lifting) exercise will be performed on
      special weight machines. Before and after 70 days of bedrest, participants will be tested on
      a corresponding set of physiological measures. Specific exercises and intensities are rotated
      such that each workout is different, with some days being heavier and some lighter. Results
      of the study will help understand which mission tasks might be affected by changes in
      physiology during space flight and design countermeasures to prevent or minimize impairment
      to these physiological systems

      The ALTERNATE COMPRESSION GARMENT STUDY (ACG) will determine effectiveness of compression
      garments on regulating blood pressure and other body systems after extended periods of
      head-down bed rest. Participants in the experimental group will wear custom-fit compression
      garments and undergo evaluation on their response to an upright tilt test and a corresponding
      set of physiological measures before and after 14 days of bed rest. These participants will
      be compared to another group of participants who did not wear the compression garments.
      Results of the study will help scientists determine the time it takes for the cardiovascular
      system to re-adapt to upright posture, determine whether wearing compression garments during
      recovery is necessary to protect against dizziness and loss of consciousness often
      experienced after space missions, and determine the effect of wearing custom fit compression
      garments on the amount of time needed to readjust to a normal, upright posture.
    

Observational model: Cohort
Time perspective: Prospective
Sampling method: Non-Probability Sample
Study population: 
        Community sample
      
Biospecimen description: 
      Blood, Urine
    
Keywords: space flight simulation study; medical research study; bed rest; microgravity; weightlessness; The effects of long duration microgravity on humans