The effects of long-term microgravity on autonomic regulation of blood circulation in crewmembers of the international space station

The article presents the results of space experiment “Pneumocard”. The investigation involved all 25 Russian members of the ISS crew. The total of 226 sessions were made including 130 aboard the ISS, 50 prior to launch and 46 on return from mission. The objective was to study effects of the spaceflight factors on autonomic regulation of blood circulation, respiration and cardiac contractility during long-duration mission. The purpose was to secure new research data that would clarify our present view of adaptation mechanisms. Registered were the following signals: electrocardiogram, impedance cardiogram, seismic cardiogram, pneumotachogram, finger photoplethysmogram. A set of hard- and software was used. Autonomic regulation of blood circulation by HRV analysis was investigated. It was shown that at the onset of a space mission parasympathetic involvement in regulation increases typically with subsequent mobilization of additional functional reserve. It guided the development of a functional states mathematical model incorporating the established types of autonomic regulation. Our data evidence that the combination of HRV analysis, pre-nosology diagnosis and probabilistic estimate of the pathology risk can reinforce the medical care program in space missions

Noninvasive investigation of the body functional state during night sleep in microgravity

The Sonocard experiment purpose was a noninvasive physiological signal recording from sleeping humans. In 2007-2012 the experiment was made by 22 Russian members of 17 missions to the International space station. Of the overall 302 experimental sessions 47 were performed pre, 215 in and 40 after flight. The seismographic technique was used to pick up cosmonaut’s body microoscillations induced by cardiac beats, respiration and motor activity. The flight Sonocard model is a midget device fitting into the T-shirt pocket. Heart rate variability analysis (HRV) was the major method of securing conclusive evidence on stress level and blood circulation autonomic regulation. We were first to trace reorganization of the autonomic regulation at the night time on different phases of long-duration space mission and pioneered a systematic investigation of the human body functional state during sleep. It was shown that in the absence of work loads and emotional stresses the central mechanisms of circulation regulation tend to increase their activities. The characteristic subsidence of breathing waves (HF) and growth of the vascular center (LF) portion within the HRV total spectrum by the end of flight were observed. Sleep quality in the course of long-duration missions was assessed. We succeeded in the first ever sleep assessment following operations in open space. The noninvasive physiological signal recording was recommended for use in spacecrew medical monitoring and ground-based experiments