Marodyne, NASA & NIH Joint Research

NASA has played a major role in the research and development of Marodyne's Low Intensity Vibration Therapy. Astronauts, despite eating and exercising as prescribed for their bone health, were still losing 1-2% bone density per month.  NASA aims to overcome this by using Marodyne LIV technology in space shuttle experiments.
 

Rapid Bone and Muscle Loss

Postmenopausal women who are untreated for bone loss can lose 1-1.5 percent of bone mass in the hip in one year while an astronaut can lose the same amount of hip bone mass in a single month. The space program demonstrated the damaging physical effects of weightlessness on the human body. Among these are muscle wasting, impaired balance and loss of bone mineral density. These effects occur rapidly in space but mimic what occurs gradually as a result of the aging process.

When working on the Space Station or living in the reduced gravity of the moon, astronauts lose bone and muscle from their legs, hips and lower backs due to reduced load-bearing. Loss of musculoskeletal tissue mass and function can cause multiple problems for the crew of long-duration space missions, including reduction in physical performance, increased risk of fall-related injuries and accidents, and potentially, bone fractures.
 

Need to Maintain Mobility, Muscle Strength and Balance

...decreased muscle function is also a serious medical risk factor, potentially resulting in impaired balance and reduced performance on the lunar or Mars surface, or during other extravehicular activities (EVA). Based on research to combat these effects in space, Marodyne developed a unique approach to enhance the musculoskeletal system in its mission to maintain mobility by maintaining muscle strength and balance.

Initial research focused on delivering specific low magnitude signals to bone to maintain bone mass in various animal models. In order to deliver the signals to humans, a platform was developed that delivered these signals through the soles of the feet. In studying the effects on bone, it was observed that these very low magnitude signals also increased muscle mass and improved balance.

Although exercise is strongly advocated for numerous health benefits, it is not always practiced by those who need it most. The Marodyne signal delivers stimulation to muscle fibers without any strenuous effort on the part of the user — simply standing on the platform for 10 minutes a day provides maximum benefit.

With the aging population, balance is of paramount importance in minimizing the risk of falls leading to fractures. Marodyne addresses the entire musculoskeletal system in its approach to maintaining a mobile lifestyle for the aging population by maintaining muscle strength, function and balance.

Together, skeletal atrophy and increased risk of falls may result in increased risk of bone fractures, a potentially catastrophic event. In addition, there are potential life-long risks to bone health on return to Earth after one or more long-duration missions.
 

The NASA Musculoskeletal Alterations Team

The Musculoskeletal Alterations Team is carrying out a coordinated program of research to help define the basic mechanisms and characteristics of musculoskeletal tissue atrophy and repair, and to validate the efficacy of exercise- and pharmacological-based countermeasures to reduce musculoskeletal tissue loss.

The currently-funded research program of the Musculoskeletal Alterations Team supports NASA in development of countermeasures that are flight relevant in the short term and in a mechanistic research program designed to provide a scientific basis for development of novel countermeasures for lunar outpost activity and for long-term exploration. Short-term needs are met by research programs that define the effect of a daily load stimulus on skeletal atrophy in long-duration space flights and by investigations that seek to reduce risk of musculoskeletal injury by developing hardware to support time-efficient and highly effective exercise prescriptions that integrate multiple modalities such as resistive exercise, cardiovascular exercise and sensorimotor training. Long-term needs are met by mechanistic studies in animal models that define the effect of microgravity and partial gravity environments, pharmacologic interventions and the space radiation environment on muscle and bone loss.
 

Earth-Based Benefits

Earth benefits include the development of exercise hardware that can reduce fall risk in the elderly by improving neuromuscular performance and reducing bone loss. Other benefits include characterization of novel pharmacologic treatments that could potentially be applied to combat muscle wasting associated with aging, cancer and HIV. Mechanistic studies of the effect of microgravity and partial gravity environments on muscle and bone metabolism and function and fracture healing will provide fundamental knowledge about the physiology of musculoskeletal tissues.

 

Related Links:

Scientific Publications about Increasing Bone Density and Muscle Strength
News Articles about NASA's Research
National Geographic article featuring Dr Rubin and the NASA research