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Watch: UAE doctor reveals details about astronaut Sultan AlNeyadi's health in space

Dr AlSuwaidi, who is the only flight doctor in the region, is monitoring AlNeyadi’s health weekly

Published: Wed 7 Jun 2023, 3:47 PM

Updated: Wed 7 Jun 2023, 10:28 PM

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Photos, video by Angel Tesorero

Photos, video by Angel Tesorero

UAE astronaut Sultan AlNeyadi, who has been space for over three months now, is in the best of health and there have been no physical concerns so far, his flight surgeon Dr Hanan Al Suwaidi has confirmed to Khaleej Times on Wednesday.

In an exclusive video interview after a session of ‘A Call from Space’ (Medical Science Edition) at the Mohammed Bin Rashid University of Medicine and Health Sciences (MBRU), Dr Al Suwaidi said: “Sultan is doing very well. We are monitoring his health periodically. There are no challenges so far.”

Dr AlSuwaidi, who is the only flight doctor in the region, is monitoring AlNeyadi’s health weekly. She is also checking if AlNeyadi is eating and sleeping well. She also monitors AlNeyadi’s vital signs whenever he is exercising for at least 2.5 hours daily to avoid muscle atrophy and bone loss triggered by microgravity,

Dr AlSuwaidi was present with other flight surgeons when AlNeyadi and SpaceX Crew 6 lifted from Kennedy Space Centre in Florida on March 2. She added that she is excited to see Sultan soon.

Watch her speak to Khaleej Times here:

Space and medicine

The latest instalment of ‘A Call from Space’ focused on the contributions of AlNeyadi’s space exploration to medical sciences.

Answering questions from health professionals, AlNeyadi said there is a correlation between space flights and medicine. He noted that he himself is a subject of physiological experiments aboard the orbiting International Space Station (ISS) by donning a Bio-Monitor and headband that are used to monitor his vital signs such as heart rate and blood pressure. This smart shirt offers insights into human body's response to microgravity and the technology can be a game-changer for remote healthcare.

AlNeyadi has also conducted experiment on Monoclonal Antibodies Protein Crystal Growth-2 (PCG2) that analyses the process of crystallising biotherapeutics in microgravity that has the potential to shorten the development cycle for new medicines on Earth.

The Emirati astronaut recently worked with Saudi astronaut Rayyanah Barnawi on a pair of space biology studies, including treating human cell samples inside the Kibo laboratory module’s Life Science Glovebox (LSG) for a study observing their inflammatory response to microgravity.

AlNeyadi also did fluid physics study and experiments for engineered heart tissues that may help doctors treat, as well as prevent, space-caused heart conditions and Earth-bound cardiac disorders.

As part of the ISS crew is also testing a novel tool for deep-space immune monitoring, and advancing research on 3D-cultured cardiac muscle tissue to evaluate human cardiac function in microgravity, which will further develop the knowledge on space exploration as humans plan to go back the Moon and go to Mars in the future.

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