Spaceflight Bone Loss
Also: spaceflight osteopenia · disuse osteoporosis
Gravity FieldsMusculoskeletalRenal & GUIn-flightPostflight RecoveryLifetime SurveillanceLEO long-durationLunar surfaceMars transit & surfacePublicClinicianResearcher
- Weight-bearing bones such as the hip and spine lose mineral during long-duration spaceflight, on the order of about 1–1.5% per month in early ISS-era/Mir data. ◇◇◇◇ Grade pending · F
- Recovery after return can be incomplete; high-resolution imaging found incomplete recovery of tibial bone strength one year after long-duration flight. ◇◇◇◇ Grade pending · F
- Exercise countermeasures and pharmacologic options are under study; details pending clinical review. ◇◇◇◇ Grade pending
Evidence grades are pending reviewer assignment. Source tags: F flight · A analog · M model/animal · C computational · E expert.
Definition & overview
Skeletal unloading in microgravity leads to site-specific bone loss, most marked at weight-bearing sites [1]. Postflight follow-up suggests recovery may be incomplete for some crew [2].
Content pending clinical review.
Hazard context (RIDGE)
Content pending clinical review.
Epidemiology & incidence in spaceflight
Content pending clinical review.
Pathophysiology
Content pending clinical review.
Clinical presentation
Content pending clinical review.
Diagnosis & monitoring
Content pending clinical review.
Prevention & countermeasures
Content pending clinical review.
Management
Content pending clinical review.
Mission-type considerations
Content pending clinical review.
Postflight & long-term outcomes
Content pending clinical review.
Terrestrial analogs & relevance
Content pending clinical review.
Research frontier
Content pending clinical review.
Commercial spaceflight notes
Content pending clinical review.
Clinical pearls / pitfalls
Content pending clinical review.
Evidence profile
- Overall certainty
- ◇◇◇◇ Grade pending (proposed)
- Last reviewed
- Pending review
References 2
- LeBlanc A, Schneider V, Shackelford L, et al. Bone mineral and lean tissue loss after long duration space flight. J Musculoskelet Neuronal Interact. 2000;1(2):157-160. PMID:15758512 F
- Gabel L, Liphardt AM, Hulme PA, et al. Incomplete recovery of bone strength and trabecular microarchitecture at the distal tibia 1 year after return from long duration spaceflight. Sci Rep. 2022;12:9446. doi:10.1038/s41598-022-13461-1 F
Citations require human verification against source before review.
Article info
- Authors
- Pending
- Reviewer
- Pending review
- Last reviewed
- Pending review
- AI-assisted
- Yes (disclosed)
- COI
- Pending
- License
- CC BY-SA 4.0
- Cite this version
- Pending first edition