Skip to main content

ISS astronaut shows how CPR is performed in space

With the nearest medical experts some 250 miles and a spaceship ride away, astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) must be well trained in performing first aid and other important medical treatments.

But with microgravity making conditions on the station a little different from those down on terra firma, some of the response methods need to be adapted in order for them to be effective.

Take cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), a life-saving procedure that’s administered when someone’s heart stops beating. As most people know, it involves a series of chest compressions to keep the person’s blood circulating so that it continues oxygenating the organs, especially the brain, thereby preventing damage.

Current ISS inhabitant Samantha Cristoforetti recently shared a video with her one million Twitter followers that offer some insight into how CPR is administered in space.

Practising CPR in Space ⛑ #MissionMinerva #CPR #LifeInSpace@esa @esaspaceflight @Space_Station pic.twitter.com/qfEcqpCMU6

— Samantha Cristoforetti (@AstroSamantha) September 2, 2022

To perform chest compressions on Earth, we use our body weight to apply pressure on the upper body. But in space, the absence of gravity makes it hard to do so, as the compression procedure would cause the astronaut to push themselves away from the person they’re trying to save.

Cristoforetti, who arrived at the orbiting outpost in April for a six-month stay, shows a couple of ways to get around this.

The first appears to be the Italian astronaut’s own unique method — by moving to an upside-down position and placing her feet on the surface of the station to give her the ability to push down. Of course, the astronaut has to be a certain height for this method to work.

The second method uses a strap on the side of the station’s CPR bed. The person conducting CPR places the belt around their body to stay securely in place so they can effectively apply pressure.

There are also at least three other ways to perform CPR in microgravity conditions. The Evetts-Russomano method, for example, involves the responder positioning their legs in a way that allows their ankles to interlock in the center of the patient’s back so they generate force on their chest for the compressions without pushing themselves away.

There’s also the reverse bearhug technique where the responder wraps their arms around the patient from behind to perform the compressions. Finally, the waist straddle involves the responder sitting astride the patient, with straps ensuring they stay secure.

To deal with a situation such as cardiac arrest, the ISS is also equipped with an automated external defibrillator that uses electric shocks to return a person’s heart rhythm to its normal state.

To date, neither CPR nor AED treatment has had to be used on the International Space Station. However, with long-duration missions to the moon and Mars on the cards, and an increase in civilian orbital flights resulting in more people of varied age and fitness heading to space, there’s an increasing chance of a medical emergency occurring far from Earth.

With that in mind, NASA and its partners will continue to ensure that emergency medical training is a major part of an astronaut’s training.

Editors' Recommendations

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
Space station crew investigating yet another coolant leak
The Soyuz MS-18 crew ship is pictured docked to the Nauka multipurpose laboratory module.

A Soyuz spaceship docked to the Nauka multipurpose laboratory module in 2021. NASA / NASA

The International Space Station (ISS) is reportedly dealing with yet another coolant leak.

Read more
How to watch two astronauts spacewalk to check the ISS for microbes
(June 9, 2023) — NASA astronaut and Expedition 68 Flight Engineer Woody Hoburg rides the Canadarm2 robotic arm while maneuvering a roll-out solar array toward the International Space Station’s truss structure 257 miles above the Pacific Ocean. In the rear, is the SpaceX Dragon crew vehicle that docked to the Harmony module’s forward port on March 3 carrying four SpaceX Crew-6 crew members.

[UPDATE: NASA has called off the spacewalk while it waits for the completion of an investigation into a leak that affected the Nauka module earlier this week. We will update this page with the new schedule once it becomes available.]

This week will see two astronauts perform a spacewalk from the International Space Station (ISS) as they collect samples from the station's exterior to use in scientific research. The two astronauts will be NASA's Loral O’Hara and European Space Agency (ESA)'s Andreas Mogensen, and the spacewalk will take place on Thursday, October 12.

Read more
NASA’s record-breaking astronaut arrives home safely
NASA astronaut Frank Rubio shortly after returning to Earth in September 2023.

NASA astronaut Frank Rubio shortly after returning to Earth after becoming the first American astronaut to spend a full year in orbit. NASA

Frank Rubio has arrived home safely after spending 371 days in space -- a record for a NASA astronaut.

Read more