LRN-20 · Case files · Learn

Case Files

Gravity Fields Hostile/Closed Environment Distance from Earth Clinician Student Operator / SFP

draft AI-assisted Last reviewed: Pending review · Reviewer: Pending review

Bottom line

Seven cases cover preflight screening, landing day, eyes, kidneys, spacewalks, motion sickness and the spine.
Every case is fictional and composite. None describes a real person, and no real patient data were used.
Each answer cites its sources; the linked clinical pages give more depth.

SFP with hypertension

A 64-year-old with treated high blood pressure asks his primary care clinician for a letter before a 3-day orbital flight. Who decides fitness, what screening applies, and what deserves a closer look?

Cardiovascular · Behavioral Health & Sleep · LEO short-duration

LRN-22 · fictional composite · draft

Postflight syncope

A crewmember faints at home the night after returning from 6 months in orbit. Is it orthostatic intolerance, and what else must be ruled out?

Cardiovascular · Neurological & Cognitive · LEO long-duration

LRN-23 · fictional composite · draft

SANS on postflight exam

A returning long-duration crewmember needs stronger reading glasses and has a swollen optic disc on one side. Is it SANS, and what does NASA practice do next?

Neuro-ophthalmic · Neurological & Cognitive · LEO long-duration

LRN-24 · fictional composite · draft

In-flight kidney stone

A crewmember on a long mission develops sudden flank pain. How would a kidney stone be recognized and managed far from a hospital, and how could it have been prevented?

Renal & GU · Musculoskeletal · LEO long-duration

LRN-25 · fictional composite · draft

DCS after EVA

Two hours after a spacewalk, a crewmember reports a deep ache in one shoulder. Decompression sickness or a strain, and how is it treated without a hyperbaric chamber?

Musculoskeletal · Neurological & Cognitive · LEO long-duration

LRN-26 · fictional composite · draft

Motion sickness in orbit

A first-time commercial flyer vomits twice on day 1 of a 4-day orbital trip. How common is this, how is it graded and treated, and what happens after landing?

Vestibular & Sensorimotor · GI & Nutrition · LEO short-duration

LRN-27 · fictional composite · draft

Postflight back pain

Three weeks after a 6-month mission, a crewmember lifts a car seat and develops back pain shooting down one leg. What is the link between spaceflight and disc herniation?

Musculoskeletal · Neurological & Cognitive · LEO long-duration

How to use the cases

Read the presentation.
Answer the questions yourself, on paper or out loud.
Open each reveal to check your reasoning. Answers cite their sources.
Finish with the teaching points and the linked pages.

Fictional and composite

These cases are invented for teaching. Each combines typical features described in published sources. They do not describe any real astronaut, spaceflight participant or patient, and no protected health information was used. Any resemblance to a real person is coincidental.

Evidence profile

Overall certainty: ◇◇◇◇ Grade pending (proposed)
Evidence types: F · Flight dataA · Terrestrial analogE · Expert / operational / standards
Literature through: 2026-10-14

Requirements referenced 0

No NASA-STD-3001 requirement maps directly to this page. See the standards quick reference.

References 0

This page makes no new factual claims. Sources are on the linked pages.

Machine-checked on 2026-10-14: each URL was fetched, each DOI's title/journal/year matched via Crossref, PubMed IDs matched to DOIs, and claims were checked against the source text (abstract, NASA document or official web page). Human verification against full text is still required before review. NASA documents are U.S. Government works (public domain) and are summarized with attribution; journal articles are summarized, not reproduced.

Article info

Authors: Pending (AI-assisted draft)
Reviewer: Pending review
Last reviewed: Pending review
Literature through: 2026-10-14
AI-assisted: Yes (disclosed)
COI: Pending
License: CC BY-SA 4.0
Use: Educational only · no CME credit · Disclaimer
Cite this version: Pending first edition

Educational use only · not medical advice · Disclaimer · CC BY-SA 4.0