Central venous pressure in space

Central venous pressure in space

Speaker: Professor Jay Buckey, Dartmouth College

On Earth, the postural effects of gravity influence our physiology every day. In space, removing the effects of gravity leads to major fluid shifts as hydrostatic pressure gradients are abolished. Dr Buckey is a doctor, physiologist and former NASA astronaut. His experiments on the Space Shuttle investigated these fluid shifts with direct invasive measurements of central venous pressure during launch and in orbit. The results were so surprising that it was initially thought the equipment must have been faulty. This work highlighted the limitations of our understanding of cardiovascular physiology and drew attention to the importance of tissue weight and associated compressive forces in the body. These factors also underlie Dr Buckey’s current research exploring a link between body weight and visual impairment in astronauts as part of the unexplained ‘space flight-associated neuro-ocular syndrome’ (SANS).

Host: Dr Thomas Smith

Seminar organised by Dr Federico Formenti