Greyswandir t1_iyks68l wrote
Edit: I noticed after typing this that your question is about prophylaxis. So presumably you mean before they launch. My bad.
I don’t know what current practice was, but when I was in university one of the professors I worked for was working with NASA on a stimulation device to prevent osteoporosis. They had found that small amounts of vibration help stave off bone loss more than high impact so he developed a belt/harness you could wear covered in small vibrating motors to help reduce bone loss. As far as muscle loss, the astronauts already undergo an exercise regime to help reduce muscle (and bone) loss.
ERDRCR OP t1_iymjatd wrote
That’s interesting- you thought prophylactic as in before launch. I thought prophylactic as in before disease sets in, but while they are in space. As in, treat them like post-menopausal women with Vitamin D and Miacalcin or alendronate.
Greyswandir t1_iympq5j wrote
Ok, I got interested enough that I reached out to my friend who does spacesuit engineering for NASA. She says she’s not aware* of any drugs they take for that purpose while in space. They focus on exercise instead. She speculates this could be an interesting clinical trial.
*Although she adds that what meds the astronauts take wouldn’t really be her area so it’s possible they do and she doesn’t know about it. A different friend in that chat who works in healthcare points out that a lot of anti-osteoporotic meds can cause kidney stones, which would be really bad in space.
Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments