In 1973 the Skylab space travels began marking the start of manned space flights into earth orbit and during this time the astronauts relied on different modern dental equipment as they proceeded with their journey. There was a need for a dental component to be incorporated into the in flight medical support system or IMSS of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration or NASA especially during the Skylab flights and so their military dentists developed the necessary component. Three man crews were sent into space from 28 to 56 days during the Skylab program and on all of the three flights launched during this period modern dental equipment was utilized.
Commenting on the reason for the dental equipment on of the military dentists said that they wanted outpatient based services to be available for the astronauts. All expeditions made use of modern equipment that in no way compared with any first aid buddy kit. For the three man crew that will engage in a mission lasting 28 days the risk for any dental problems occurring is a mere one percent and this served as the basis for the treatment concept developed for the Skylab project. When dental problems begin to affect an astronauts working habits then these comprise the one percent risk previously talked about with possible cases including pulpitis and periodontal abscess.
With a five percent risk rating it is more likely for astronauts to experience minor dental problems like chipped teeth. There are a lot of things that come with the IMSS dental equipment this article will discuss including tools from forceps to a Gigli saw as well as restorative material, syringes, and anesthetic. It is not an easy thing to make the restoration material meet the specifications needed for it to be used in space but the Air Force den corps were able to develop the necessary material. The absence of gravity did not affect the material in any way.
Knowing how to use the equipment is as important as the equipment being able to pass the testing process of NASA so other than a series of rigorous testing they also conducted intensive training programs for the flight crews. Basically the purpose of conducting the training programs was for the flight crews to learn implementing different procedures not exceeding the skill level needed for tooth removal. When the need for dental treatment arises the flight crew can rely on the integrated dental manual that will be placed on the space vehicle carrying various illustrations on diagnosis, procedures, and oral structures obtained from personal radiographs for each crew member.
For other dental needs the astronauts can rely on the dentist in mission control as he is always ready with oral casts, complete radiographs, and even a record of all space project related dental treatment as far as the sixties. Ground control will always have a say especially when it comes to dental procedures on board space vehicles and so there is a need for constant communication between the two parties.
Even with all the precautionary tactics taken by NASA there are still a number of people who are having doubts when it comes to the idea of non dentists doing dental procedures. But incapacitating dental pain experienced by a crewman aboard the space ship could threaten a space mission costing hundreds of millions of dollars, and could have threatened one of the Skylab missions, a loss that probably could not be accepted up to this decade. He further says that finally, a procedure as complex as tooth removal would be considered only after all other approaches had failed.
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