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Morris PD, Anderton RA, Marshall-Goebel K, Britton JK, Lee SMC, Smith NP, van de Vosse FN, Ong KM, Newman TA, Taylor DJ, Chico T, Gunn JP, Narracott AJ, Hose DR, Halliday I. Computational modelling of cardiovascular pathophysiology to risk stratify commercial spaceflight. Nat Rev Cardiol 2024:10.1038/s41569-024-01047-5. [PMID: 39030270 DOI: 10.1038/s41569-024-01047-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/30/2024] [Indexed: 07/21/2024]
Abstract
For more than 60 years, humans have travelled into space. Until now, the majority of astronauts have been professional, government agency astronauts selected, in part, for their superlative physical fitness and the absence of disease. Commercial spaceflight is now becoming accessible to members of the public, many of whom would previously have been excluded owing to unsatisfactory fitness or the presence of cardiorespiratory diseases. While data exist on the effects of gravitational and acceleration (G) forces on human physiology, data on the effects of the aerospace environment in unselected members of the public, and particularly in those with clinically significant pathology, are limited. Although short in duration, these high acceleration forces can potentially either impair the experience or, more seriously, pose a risk to health in some individuals. Rather than expose individuals with existing pathology to G forces to collect data, computational modelling might be useful to predict the nature and severity of cardiovascular diseases that are of sufficient risk to restrict access, require modification, or suggest further investigation or training before flight. In this Review, we explore state-of-the-art, zero-dimensional, compartmentalized models of human cardiovascular pathophysiology that can be used to simulate the effects of acceleration forces, homeostatic regulation and ventilation-perfusion matching, using data generated by long-arm centrifuge facilities of the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the European Space Agency to risk stratify individuals and help to improve safety in commercial suborbital spaceflight.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul D Morris
- Division of Clinical Medicine, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK.
- Department of Cardiology, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Sheffield, UK.
| | - Ryan A Anderton
- Medical Department, Spaceflight, UK Civil Aviation Authority, Gatwick, UK
| | - Karina Marshall-Goebel
- The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Joseph K Britton
- Aerospace Medicine Specialist Wing, Royal Air Force (RAF) Centre of Aerospace Medicine, Henlow, UK
| | - Stuart M C Lee
- KBR, Human Health Countermeasures Element, NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Nicolas P Smith
- Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand
- Auckland Bioengineering Institute, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Frans N van de Vosse
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, Netherlands
| | - Karen M Ong
- Virgin Galactic Medical, Truth or Consequences, NM, USA
| | - Tom A Newman
- Division of Clinical Medicine, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
- Department of Cardiology, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Sheffield, UK
| | - Daniel J Taylor
- Division of Clinical Medicine, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | - Tim Chico
- Division of Clinical Medicine, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
- Department of Cardiology, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Sheffield, UK
| | - Julian P Gunn
- Division of Clinical Medicine, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
- Department of Cardiology, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Sheffield, UK
| | - Andrew J Narracott
- Division of Clinical Medicine, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
- Insigneo Institute, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | - D Rod Hose
- Division of Clinical Medicine, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
- Insigneo Institute, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | - Ian Halliday
- Division of Clinical Medicine, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
- Insigneo Institute, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
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Coveney PV, Hoekstra A, Rodriguez B, Viceconti M. Computational biomedicine. Part II: organs and systems. Interface Focus 2020. [DOI: 10.1098/rsfs.2020.0082] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Peter V. Coveney
- Centre for Computational Science, University College London, London, UK
- Informatics Institute, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Alfons Hoekstra
- Informatics Institute, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Blanca Rodriguez
- Department of Computer Science, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Marco Viceconti
- Department of Industrial Engineering, Alma Mater Studiorum - University of Bologna, and Laboratorio di Tecnologia Medica, IRCCS Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, Bologna, Italy
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