HSL Seminar: Thomas Joseph Abitante, HST PhD Candidate (9 a.m., 5/15, 33-206)

"Development of a Functional Electrical Stimulation Therapy for Use in Microgravity"

Thomas Joseph Abitante
HST, PhD Candidate

Abstract: The mechanical forces that act upon the bone are crucial to bone development, growth and maintenance. Most of these mechanical forces are derived from gravitation loading, (impacts and body weight) and from muscular loading (muscle contractions). Astronauts aboard space flights are no longer subjected to gravitational loading and experience decreased muscular loading from lack of use. Despite a rigorous and time consuming exercise regimen designed to provide loading, astronauts still experience muscle atrophy and bone degeneration. A new potential countermeasure is Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES), where electrical pulses are delivered to nerve, causing contractions of the targeted muscles. This study aims to encompasses three unique areas of research and integrate them in order to develop an FES based countermeasure for use in space. The first field is muscle physiology and how muscle  reacts to FES.  The second field is biomechanical modeling. . This study will create a femur strain model by using forces obtained by electrically induced isometric contractions in order to better predict the number of loading cycles required to promote bone maintenance, a necessary component for regimen design both in space and in the clinic. Finally, this study will incorporate closed loop control system design in order to create a portable, self-sustained FES system that can be used aboard space craft.

(Practice for the HST Qual Exam.)