Elena Tomilovskaya, Head of the Department of Sensorimotor Physiology and Prevention of the Institute of Biomedical Problems, noted that a prototype of the device is planned to be prepared by the end of 2024
MOSCOW, June 18. /tass/. Specialists of the Institute of Biomedical Problems (IMBP) RAS is engaged in the creation of an electromyostimulator of skeletal muscles for home use, which will combine the best achievements of space medicine. Elena Tomilovskaya, head of the Department of Sensorimotor Physiology and Prevention of the Institute, told TASS about this on the Day of the Medical Worker.
"The new device will combine the achievements of space medicine," Tomilovskaya said. According to her, a prototype of the device, which can be put into mass production, is planned to be prepared by the end of 2024.
Tomilovskaya noted that there are two types of electromyostimulators for astronauts in Russian space medicine. "One is more aimed at training the strength capabilities of muscles and at training large muscles that allow us to move, run, lift weights. The other one is aimed at training endurance and those muscles that ensure the maintenance of the pose - vertical, in a sitting position, and so on. These are fundamentally different stimulation schemes that we want to combine in one device so that there are two modes in it, a person can do both workouts," she said.
Device Features
She said that the new electromyostimulator can be used at home by elderly people, as well as those who do not have the opportunity to engage in active physical exercises. "These are people who are isolated or immobilized as a result of injuries and diseases," she said. As the specialist noted, the device can also be used for the rehabilitation of people who have had covid for a long time "in the absence of motor load, in isolation, immobilization."
Tomilovskaya said that tests are now being conducted among elderly people who have "a history of cerebrovascular disorders," as well as among people suffering from chronic heart failure. She noted that for such patients, electromyostimulation is a very good alternative to physical exertion, since it does not cause an increase in heart rate and an increase in blood pressure.
At the same time, the specialist noted that the device, of course, cannot completely replace walking and physical activity. "If a person can engage in active physical activity, he should do it. But there are a lot of people who, for various reasons, do not have such an opportunity, it is for them that this device is being developed," Tomilovskaya said.
The weight of the electromyostimulator will be about 5 kg. In 2024, tests are planned with the participation of people who have been in "dry" immersion for 7 days (a unique method for creating weightlessness on Earth). "These conditions significantly weaken the muscular system. During immersion, we will apply electromyostimulation and after a week of such exposure, we will see how much it helped prevent the changes that we see in the muscles after such a deep motor unloading," Tomilovskaya said.