The European Space Agency entrusts a Spanish company with the development of a system that makes it possible to diagnose with ultrasound what conditions astronauts suffer on those long-haul missions
The Spanish multinational GMV and the Emergency Radiology Section of the La Paz University Hospital in Madrid have been chosen by specialists in space medicine from the European Space Agency (ESA) to launch the project. Alisse. Its objective is the development of a artificial intelligence technology, based on deep learning, that guides and assists astronauts in the acquisition of high diagnostic quality ultrasound images in different organs affected by the conditions of manned space travel. This will facilitate the work of medical specialists who, remote formthey will be able to identify from the ground the conditions that the astronauts could suffer at an early stage and put a remedy to prevent their advance.
In addition, researchers from the Nuclear Physics group of the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM), led by Jose Manuel Udascollaborate in the generation of extremely realistic simulations with which to improve the robustness of the system in an environment as unknown as outer space.
The project is designed for “long-distance space missions” and seeks to “cover a need that exists, because a lot is being learned about the effects of microgravity, but there is still a lot to study,” he explains. Carlos Illanaproduct manager Secure e-Solutions in GMV.
And it is that astronauts, before embarking on a mission, are professionals who enjoy very good health. With perfect eyesight and good physical shape, high muscular level, flexibility and manual dexterity. However, space is a very hostile environment for the human body. Many of our organs are prone to diseases from the lack of gravity in this habitat, or by exposure to cosmic radiation. It usually produces loss of bone and muscle mass, impaired liver function, increases the probability of forming kidney stones and thrombi, the eye becomes hyperopic, etc. Cosmic radiation also has a very negative impact on the spleen, the immune system and the heart.
Mission to Mars
Long-haul missions are typically short-staffed (4-5 astronauts) and short on space. Therefore, the diagnostic means for these possible pathologies must be small and easy to use, thinking that there will not be a medical professional among the staff, although before going into space the astronauts are trained with a forty-hour medical course that enables them to -during their six-month stay in orbit, in the case of the International Space Station (ISS)- treat common health problems. Similarly, one of the ISS members is assigned the role of Medical Officer (CMO). “For size, ultrasound is ideal, but it is operator-dependent“, that is to say, that the part of the easy handling fails.
In addition, in space the use of telemedicine is frequent, which can be in real time during the stay on the ISS. But not on longer-haul missions, such as interplanetary space exploration, the new Gateway International Station around the Moon, and future crewed missions to Mars, where crews will find themselves between 54 and 402 million kilometers. “That is why an autonomous system is necessary,” says Illana.
And that’s where the project comes in Alisse.
The goal is to “research new artificial intelligence techniques that come and attend to the crew members in the acquisition of diagnostic quality images, eliminating the need to consult with specialist doctors on the ground interactively to obtain said images. Thus, the possible conditions of the crew members of the spacecraft can be detected at an early stage and follow its evolution using ultrasound images.
quality images
In this way, it will be the team itself that will suggest how to place the probe and adjust the parameters to obtain a better quality image (sound power, depth, gain), so that both the acquired and reference slice planes can be viewed at the same time and compared. Because “the problem is not interpreting the image, but taking it”.
However, there is a certain variability between the different teams. Therefore, “the goal is democratize ultrasound, generate a model that allows its use in any of them”, affirms Udas. In his opinion, the project will allow “even a probe to be connected to a mobile. The ESA has given the impetus, but the jump to other devices will be simple”.
The project, which will conclude at the end of this year, began in 2021 with “the evaluation of the state of the art and the choice of technologies. Then the prototyping began, and now and until April we are in the phase of case capture and labeling. Then a clinical evaluation will be carried out, with students with medical training but not in ultrasound.”
And what better than working with real cases? It is now a matter of carrying out a “systematization of ultrasound images so that artificial intelligence learns and differentiates between them”. the normal from the pathological“, Explain Miracles Mart de Graciafrom the Emergency Radiology Section of the La Paz University Hospital.
effects of microgravity
These images are being retrieved from the PACS and tagged based on the diana organsso that “we have enough to validate and develop the software“. These target organs have been determined based on the most frequent pathologies related to microgravity, such as “decalcification, which causes kidney stones; venous thrombosis in atypical locations, such as the jugular veins, since these veins are not prepared for the return of blood like those of the legs; muscular problems, studying how is normal muscle mass, and increased intracranial pressure.”
As, los organs whose images are being collected include kidney, bladder, muscle, deep venous system, heart, and eye.
“It would be interesting, at some point, to be able to compare with the astronauts themselves, but at the moment it is not possible.”
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