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March 14th, 2012 
FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda TUESDAY, March 13 (HealthDay News) — Extended space travel can
cause eye and brain abnormalities in astronauts, researchers have
found.
For the study, published online March 13 in the journal
Radiology, investigators used MRI scans to examine the eyes and
brains of 27 astronauts who spent an average of 108 days in space aboard
the space shuttle and/or the International Space Station.
Eight of the 27 astronauts underwent a second MRI exam after a second
space mission that lasted an average of 39 days.
The study authors found that among those who experienced a lifetime
total of more than 30 days of exposure to microgravity, 33 percent of the
astronauts had expansion of the cerebral spinal fluid space surrounding
the optic nerve, 22 percent had flattening of the rear of the eyeball, 15
percent had bulging of the optic nerve, and 11 percent had changes in the
pituitary gland and its connection to the brain.
These types of abnormalities are seen in cases of intracranial
hypertension for which no cause can be found for the increased pressure
around the brain. The pressure causes swelling of the juncture between the
optic nerve and the eyeball, which can lead to vision problems.
“Microgravity-induced intracranial hypertension represents a
hypothetical risk factor and a potential limitation to long-duration space
travel,” study author Dr. Larry Kramer, a professor of diagnostic and
interventional imaging at the University of Texas Medical School at
Houston, said in a news release from the Radiological Society of North
America.
The microgravity-related changes seen in astronauts may help improve
understanding of the causes of intracranial pressure in earthbound
patients, he added.
Vision changes in some International Space Station astronauts have been
noted but the cause is not fully understood, according to Dr. William
Tarver, chief of the flight medicine clinic at NASA/Johnson Space
Center.
No astronauts have been listed as ineligible for space flight duties as
a result of the study findings, which Tarver described as suspicious but
not conclusive of intracranial hypertension.
“NASA has placed this problem high on its list of human risks, has
initiated a comprehensive program to study its mechanisms and
implications, and will continue to closely monitor the situation,” he said
in the news release.
More information
The U.S. National Library of Medicine has more about increased intracranial pressure.
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