Mood and autonomic nervous system activity during 520 days of confinement in a simulated mission to Mars: preliminary resultsfrom the Mars500 project

DANIEL E. VIGO; BARBARA OGRINZ; LI WAN; EVGENY BERSENEV; FRANCIS TUERLINCKX; OMER VAN DEN BERGH; ANDRÉ E. AUBERT

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Simposio; International Symposium on the Results of the Experiments Simulating a Manned Mission to Mars (MARS-500); 2012

In prolonged space flights the effect of long-term confinement on mood and autonomic nervous system activity is difficult to separate from the effect of prolonged exposure to microgravity or other space related stressors. The aim of our study was to investigate whether mood and cardiovascular autonomic control were specifically altered by long-term confinement during the 520 days period of the Mars500 mission. Mood alterations were assessed through questionnaires filled out by the crew on a daily basis. Physiological measurements, performed every two months, included 24h-ECG Holter recordings, as well as additional short-duration ECG and blood pressure measurements. We will give a descriptive overview of the data, including the missing data. Preliminary results regarding mood data and sleep-wake differences of cardiac autonomic activity will be presented. Based on Mars 105 pilot study results published by our group and others, we hypothesize an increased parasympathetic activity during wake periods, as well as a decrease in mood during the first months of isolation.