An Anesthesia Display for a Space Station: Clinical Validation of Neuromuscular Blockade Models

Salt Lake Community College

An anesthesia drug display that shows the predicted effects of medication may be extremely useful on a space station and in situations where an inexperienced person could be performing experiments on animals or emergency treatments to fellow astronauts. Such a drug display shows drugs given and predicts their effects on the person or animal. In order for such a display to be useful, the predictions must be validated to ensure accuracy of and instill confidence in those who use the display. This study consists of validation of rocuronium which is a drug used for neuromuscular blockade (muscle relaxation). The effects of this drug have currently been studied on 12 patients. Qualitatively, the effects of this drug appear to be in line with the kinetic model predictions. Data will be gathered from more patients and will be statistically analyzed and compared with the model predictions for validation.