HRR - Task - Neuro-Vestibular Examination During and After Spaceflight (Reschke)

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Neuro-Vestibular Examination During and After Spaceflight (Reschke)

Last Published: 07/30/21 01:05:34 PM (Central)

Task Book: Entry
Principal Investigator: Reschke, Millard

Short Title: CIPHER Vestibular Health - ISS

Responsible HRP Element: Human Health Countermeasures

Collaborating Org(s):

Funding Status: Active - Currently funded and in progress

Procurement Mechanism(s):

Solicited

Aims:

Examine the head position relative to the body and, if tilted look for the presence of an ocular tilt reaction.
Determine the subjective nonvisual vertical using the test of the finger. A deviation of the subjective vertical occurs in more than 90 % of all acute unilateral peripheral and central vestibular disorders.
Examine the subject for nystagmus when the gaze is straight-ahead or directed right, left, up, and down. Frenzel lenses help to differentiate between a peripheral vestibular spontaneous nystagmus that can be suppressed by visual fixation and a central fixation nystagmus that is present during fixation.
Perform positioning maneuver to determine if there is a positioning nystagmus or positioning vertigo, and also to differentiate between a BPPV and a central positional or positioning nystagmus.
Examine three different types of eye movements (smooth pursuit, saccades, gaze-holding function) for central eye movement disorders such as saccadic smooth pursuit, gaze-evoked nystagmus, disorder of saccades as well as impaired visual fixation suppression of the VOR. If patients with acute vertigo have central ocular motor disorders, this suggests a central origin.
Perform the head-impulse test as well as slow active head rotation addressing the question of a unilateral or bilateral functional deficit of the VOR.
Perform whole body rotation and whole-body translation to evaluate whether the subjective perception of motion by the semicircular canals and otoliths is accurate

Resources (Flight)

Deliverables (1)

Category: Risk Characterization, Quantification
Subcategory: Evidence or Risk Characterization

Description:

Determine if vestibular organs and/or the central vestibular system undergo some structural changes during long exposure to microgravity, which could be responsible for vestibular disorders when transitioning to a new gravitational environment.

Use well established and validated protocols to detect head-motion oscillospia and predict acute or chronic vestibular syndromes. If the observed physiological changes in the crewmembers are more deleterious after the year-long ISS expeditions than those documented after standard-duration ISS expeditions (~6 months), then relevant countermeasures will be required to enable longer duration missions. Depending on the etiology of the vestibular disorders revealed by our tests, countermeasures to these problems will be proposed based on vestibular rehabilitation therapy currently used in patients with vestibular disorders, such as habituation, gaze stabilization, and/or balance training exercises.

Internal Customers:
Human Health Countermeasures
External Customers:
None

Mappings

Risk of Altered Sensorimotor/Vestibular Function Impacting Critical Mission Tasks

SM-103: Characterize the effects of short and long-duration weightlessness, with and without deep-space radiation, on spatial orientation and motion sickness after G transitions.

Neuro-Vestibular Examination During and After Spaceflight (Reschke)

Related Tasks (103)

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Risk Approach Plans (2)

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Common Item(s)
	Risk of Altered Sensorimotor/Vestibular Function Impacting Critical Mission Tasks
	SM-103: Characterize the effects of short and long-duration weightlessness, with and without deep-space radiation, on spatial orientation and motion sickness after G transitions.