Space Medicine
Space Medicine
Space Medicine
NASA Using Spinal Ultrasound to Study Why Astronauts Grow in Space
Beside the incredible experience itself, a big advantage of going to space for astronauts is that they grow about 3% taller during a typical mission. Even the rest of us bound by gravity grow a bit taller during sleep. This phenomenon is not well...
Space Medicine
BMJ Explores Medical Issues of Space Travelers; Both Terrestrial and Extraterrestrial
The BMJ 2012 Christmas issue is the gift that keeps on giving. We've already posted about the study that shows that noticing your discomfort on the trip to the hospital could be more useful than the doc poking your belly when diagnosing acute...
Space Medicine
The MedTech of the Red Bull Stratos Jump
On October 14, 2012 Felix Baumgartner jumped out of a capsule suspended under a helium-filled balloon as part of the Red Bull Stratos project. He and other men had done such jumps several times before, but on the 14th he did it at 128,000 ft...
Space Medicine
Levitating Drugs May Improve Efficacy
It is ironic that the process used to discover pharmaceutical drug targets is the same one that decreases the actual efficacy of those drugs once ingested. If you remember from basic chemistry, there are compounds that exist in highly ordered...
Space Medicine
Microflow Device Headed to the Final Frontier to Help Keep Astronauts Healthy
Star Trek may have had Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy around to keep the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise safe from space bugs, but at present, an astronaut with an illness must send samples down to Earth for analysis and diagnosis. This all may change...
Space Medicine
Plasma Flashlight Torches Bacteria
A collaborative team of scientists from several research institutes in China and Australia has developed a hand held, battery-powered plasma flashlight for removing bacteria from skin and other surfaces. The device was designed for use by paramedics...
Space Medicine
Man Meets Machine in Outer Space
Last Wednesday the first handshake in space between a human and a humanoid took place when commander Daniel Burbank of the International Space Station (ISS) shook hands with Robonaut 2, NASA’s humanoid robot. You may remember Robonaut 2 from last...
Space Medicine
NASA Biocapsule Implant Diagnoses and Treats Diseases Without Human Intervention
Gizmodo has a fascinating story on an implant, the Biocapsule, developed by NASA to treat astronauts while they are on a space mission. The device, a small rod to be implanted under the skin before take-off, is made out of carbon nanotubes and is...
Space Medicine
Augmented Reality System Helps Astronauts Diagnose Medical Problems in Outer Space
In space, nothing is as easy as it is on Earth, and an ill astronaut could pose a major problem to any space mission. For advanced diagnostis purposes, the International Space Station already carries an ultrasound device, but astronauts are...
Space Medicine