UQ student's research will give astronauts' feet a work-out

Astronauts may soon be giving their feet a work-out with exercises devised by a University of Queensland student.

Scott McLean, a final-year PhD student with the Human Movement Studies Department, has received NASA funding and a US$2000 Biomechanics Student Travel Grant Award to study the effects of zero gravity on astronauts' feet.

One of only five successful applicants world-wide for the travel grant, Mr McLean will be working as a research fellow with Dr Brian Davis at the Cleveland Clinic - a large hospital-based research clinic in Cleveland, Ohio.

From June until October this year, he will conduct research into the relationship between zero gravity conditions and bone mineral content loss in the calcaneus (the heel). Mr McLean said zero gravity leads to reduced tension in the plantar aponeurosis (a structure running along the foot's arch) and Achilles tendons during everyday activity. He is investigating whether increased strain on these structures (induced through specific exercises) can help minimise the process.

'During months in space, astronauts' feet are not subject to the same repetitive loads as they are on Earth. As a result, astronauts have been observed to lose up to 20 percent mineral content in their calcaneus during a four-month mission. Consequently, when astronauts return to Earth, they can be more susceptible to tendon injuries and long-term orthopaedic problems,' Mr McLean said.

He said his studies would lead to specific exercise regimens which may act to increase strains in these tendons during an extended mission and hence reduce bone mineral loss in the feet of astronauts. These exercises would be performed by astronauts in space and would most likely involve specific cycling, treadmill running, and jumping activities.

Mr McLean's PhD on ligament injuries is supervised by Department senior lecturers Dr Robert Neal (Human Movement Studies), Dr William Daniel (Mechanical Engineering Department) and Dr Peter Myers (Holy Spirit Hospital).

For more information, contact Mr McLean (telephone 07 3365 6313).