Use of anti-psychotics for astronauts that become mentally ill on long duration space voyages.
- Paper number
IAC-08.A1.1.10
- Author
Dr. Austin Mardon, Antarctic Institute of Canada, Canada
- Coauthor
Ms. Catherine Mardon, Canada
- Coauthor
Mr. Paul Hammersley, University of Manchester, United Kingdom
- Year
2008
- Abstract
The stress of long duration voyages to the Moon, Mars and beyond might result in decompensation of individual astronauts minds. The Russian space program had an incident where one of their cosmonauts had an incident of mental illness during flight and the recent well publicized incident of a flight capable American astronaut that is alleged to have attempted to assault if not seriously harm another woman underlies that even with strict screening and mental health support a mental break can happen. The author will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of approved treatments for psychosis. These chemicals have not been tested in weightlessness or low gravity and some of their delivery system might not operate under anything except full gravity such as risperadol consta which needs to be mixed just before being administered. As a group of medications they have been known and used for psychotic patients since the 1950's so as far as we know they are safe to use. When a patient has their initial psychotic break it is usual and sometimes necessary that an injection or several be administered to the patient to stabilize them. After this point it is usual that tablets are administered and taken on a long term basis. The author proposes that a series of animal experiments be conducted for the potential in flight use of these neuraleptics and other psychoactive medications to save a future mission and stabilize a potentially psychotic individual. It should be noted that the Russian cosmonaut did not express any external or internal violent tendencies.
- Abstract document
- Manuscript document
(absent)