This viewgraph presentation reviews NASA's role in medical translational research, and the importance in research for space exploration. The application of medical research for space exploration translates to health care in space medicine, and on earth

Bernstam, Elmer

Iyengar, M. Sriram

Johnson-Throop, Kathy A.

Meric-Bernstam, Funda

NASA Technical Reports Server

Translational Research in 
Space Exploration
M. Sriram Iyengar, PhD1,2
Kathy A. Johnson-Throop, PhD1
1NASA Johnson Space Center
2University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
https://ntrs.nasa.gov/search.jsp?R=20070028896 2019-08-30T01:34:15+00:00Z
Space Flight poses special health 
challenges
• Musculoskeletal: Loss of muscle and bone 
mass
• Systemic: Fluid shifts within torso
• Vestibular system: Vertigo, nausea
• Radiation effects
• Others
NASA: A pioneer in translational 
research
• Due to necessity, NASA long has been engaged in 
expeditiously applying fundamental lab research to 
devices, medications, training, and countermeasures.
• Evidence from space travel Æ Compiled Æ Analyzed Æ
Develop equipment, Medications, Countermeasures Æ
Test terrestrially Æ Implement and fly on mission Æ
Evidence from new mission
• In the last few years the Medical Informatics and Health 
Care Systems Branch at NASA Johnson Space Center 
has been systematizing this process with the assistance 
of computing technologies.
Evidence-based technologies 
enable translation
• Need to apply from analog environments 
and health care knowledge-bases
– National Health Information Network
• Perform meta analysis and combine data 
from multiple sources
• Standardized coding methodologies can 
enable combining data into complete and 
consistent databases
– SNOMED is a focus of interest
Applying terrestrial medical 
research
• Terrestrially the standard of care is evolving
• At NASA we are interested in two kinds of analog environments
– Analogs with constraints on mass, power, volume, personnel, training
– Physiological and clinical analogs, sometimes specially designed
experiments such as bed-rest studies
• Adapt R&D in these environments and insert or leverage these 
early into the requirements process so that a product adapted for 
space travel can be easily developed, e.g. Lightweight Trauma 
Module
• The military is a great source for these kinds of analogs
• Both Hardware (devices, sensors), and also Software-intensive 
appliances
R&D at NASA also supports 
terrestrial healthcare
• NASA has long tradition of translating products 
developed for spaceflight into products that are useful 
terrestrially
• In healthcare, two examples:
– GuideView technology, originally developed as a just-in-time 
medical procedure assistant for long duration space flight, can 
be adapted easily to terrestrial environments wherever physician
density is low.
– Use of ultrasound for non-traditional imaging. E.g. pursue ability 
to use ultrasound for diagnosis of bone fracture and retinal 
detachment. NASA focusses on ultrasound for spaceflight 
because it has better MPV factors than equipment used 
terrestrially (X-rays, MRI). But this technology adaptation is 
equally useful terrestrially to support remote-care and 
telemedicine


Translational Research in Space Exploration

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