Relationship between intracranial pressure, attention and fine motor coordination after negative head tilt in healthy subjects

• Grant number: 22/09118-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: October 01, 2022
• End date: July 31, 2024
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy
• Principal Investigator: Thiago Luiz de Russo
• Grantee: Thainá Cristina Ramos dos Santos
• Host Institution: Centro de Ciências Biológicas e da Saúde (CCBS). Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCAR). São Carlos , SP, Brazil
• Associated scholarship(s): 23/09005-7 - Effect of using Soft Six Finger on cortical electrical activity in post-stroke patients, BE.EP.IC

Abstract

Man's trip to the moon was one of the most awaited moments for mankind, and we are getting to the next step: the trip to Mars. From this, there are several studies about the effects that microgravity can have on the astronaut's body. Due to the change in the hydrostatic gradient of space in relation to the Earth, the human body undergoes a displacement of fluids in which there is a decrease in hydrostatic pressure in the lower limbs and an increase in the upper limbs, especially in the cranial cavity. With this, astronauts are susceptible to suffering increased intracranial pressure (ICP), directly impacting the functioning of the central nervous system and may result in functional deficits, such as difficulty in motor coordination and impairment of cognitive aspects. The gold standard for ICP monitoring is by invasive method, but non-invasive methods have gained importance for the spatial environment. A widely used way to simulate microgravity is the negative head tilt, which allows us to study changes caused by the redirection of fluids in a terrestrial environment. Objective: To relate the morphology of the ICP wave with performance on cognitive and motor tests; to identify changes in performance on pre- and post-head-down tilt tests. Methodology: 50 healthy, active individuals of both sexes, aged 25-45 years, who fit the eligibility criteria. Blood tests and cardiopulmonary exercise testing will be performed, followed by the experimental protocol. This will consist first of cognitive tests and non-invasive monitoring of ICP on a negative head tilt. The cognitive and motor tests will be repeated at the end of 60 minutes together with cortical electrical activity monitoring. Statistics: Tests for normality and homogeneity of the data will be applied. To compare performance on tests before and after negative head tilt, paired t-tests will be applied, and Spearman's rank correlation coefficient will be used to determine the magnitude of the relationship between ICP and test performance. A 5% significance level and 95% confidence interval will be considered for all analyses.(AU)