Brain scans of astronauts who were in space for long periods of time suggest a significant occurrence of a condition that can affect vision.
New research from NASA suggests that prolonged periods of time in space may cause serious damage to your eyes. Brain scan tests were performed on 27 astronauts who had spent an average of 108 days floating in space.
About a third of the astronauts had an increase in the cerebrospinal fluid space that surrounds their optic nerve. Another 22% seemed to have endured a flattening of the back of their eyeball.
There were also incidences of bulging optic nerves and pituitary gland abnormalities. Such symptoms are often associated with idiopathic intracranial hypertension essentially increased pressure around the brain.
There was no control data against which to compare these results since all of these astronauts had been in space before.
According to the chief of flight medicine clinic at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, William Tarver, “NASA has placed this problem high on its list of human risks, has initiated a comprehensive program to study its mechanisms and implications and will continue to closely monitor the situation.”
