Excessive alcohol consumption is more common in the UK Armed Forces than in the general population. There are certain socio-demographic characteristics associated with heavy drinking within the military; for example, young age, being single and being a smoker, which may allow the targeting of preventive interventions.

Deployment experiences and problems at home during and following deployment, as well as the occupational milieu of the unit, influence personnel's risk of heavy drinking.

Aim NASA and private spacefaring companies plan to send exploration missions to mars within the next two decades. The environment of space, duration of the mission, distance from earth, and limited available resources present significant challenges for the provision of health care. It has been estimated that at least one medical emergency is likely to occur during such a mission, which may necessitate surgical treatment, and therefore anaesthesia. The provision of safe anaesthesia faces challenges arising from physiological adaptations to space, difficulty achieving and maintaining personnel expertise, possible pharmacological changes in anaesthetic agents used, limited consumable shelf-life and provision of intravenous fluids and blood products. In this review article we discuss these challenges in the context of a hypothetical case.