21-Day Dry Immersion: Schedule of Investigations and Major Results

The paper describes the main stages of the protocol and results of a unique 21-day experiment undertaken at the Russian Federation State Research Center Institute of Biomedical Problems of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS) (IBMP) under the conditions of Dry Immersion. A cohort of participants consisted of 10 healthy male volunteers (the mean age 29.3 ± 3.56 years). The experiment has demonstrated the feasibility and safety of conducting long-duration immersion exposures, confirming the results obtained during previous shorter exposures, as well as allowed us to describe the dynamics of events during extended chronic stays in the conditions of simulated hypogravity. The accumulated experiences are useful for further research into the efficiency of applying the conditions of simulated microgravity and other prophylactic means as countermeasures against negative effects occurring to human body during extended support and weight unloading.