simple and safe laboratory quantitative tests were able to differentiate between elderly fallers and elderly individuals who did not fall, suggesting a possible clinical application as a preliminary screening tool for predicting future risk of falling.

To cope with the deterioration in their sensory input and processing ability, elderly individuals seemed to have developed a strategy of stiffening and freezing their lower legs during upright standing.

Background: Postural control and falls in the elderly constitute a major health problem. The interest in balance deficits is growing, as concern about the rising costs of health care increases. This issue is particularly relevant to the elderly population in which falls occur most frequently. Postural control in the elderly was studied using a cognitive approach. Objective: The purpose of this study was to study the characteristics of central processing of postural control while performing cognitive tasks. Methods: A dual-task procedure was developed to estimate the level of automaticity of a quiet upright standing task. The effect of a concurrent attention-demanding task (modified Stroop test) on the efficiency of balance control in the elderly was determined using force platform and electromyography measurements. Results: It was found that there is an increase in postural sway in old subjects compared with young subjects when performing single tasks and dual-task tests. The results of the study demonstrate that postural adjustments require cognitive processing; young and old subjects showed similar interference effects on postural steadiness (postural sway) caused by the concurrent attention-demanding task. The results are corroborated by the hypothesis that a dual task gives information on the restoration of automaticity of postural control in old age by a central reorganization process. When performing a dual task tested on a narrow base of support, the old subjects decreased their body sway, while the younger did not. According to electromyography measurements, the older subjects increased their muscle activity in the tibialis anterior and soleus muscles, using slow-twitch motor units compared with the younger subjects. Conclusions: Both alterations (cognitive and base of support) have a substantially greater effect on the elderly than on the young. The older subjects decreased their body sway by activating a cocontraction strategy of postural control around the ankle joint, probably because of the danger to their postural stability.

This study compared the efficacy of Adeli suit treatment (AST) with neurodevelopmental treatment (NDT) in children with cerebral palsy (CP). Twenty-four children with CP, Levels II to IV according to the Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS), were matched by age and functional status and randomly assigned to the AST or NDT treatment groups. In the AST group (n=12; eight males, four females; mean age 8.3y [SD 2.0]), six children had spastic/ataxic diplegia, one triplegia and five spastic/mixed quadriplegia. In the NDT group (n=12; nine males, three females; mean age 8.1y [SD 2.2]), five children had spastic diplegia and seven had spastic/mixed quadriplegia. Both groups were treated for 4 weeks (2 hours daily, 5 days per week, 20 sessions). To compare treatments, the Gross Motor Function Measure (GMFM-66) and the mechanical efficiency index (EI HB ) during stair-climbing were measured at baseline, immediately after 1 month of treatment, and 10 months after baseline. The small but significant time effects for GMFM-66 and EI HB that were noted after 1 month of both intensive physiotherapy courses were greater than expected from natural maturation of children with CP at this age. Improvements in motor skills and their retention 9 months after treatment were not significantly different between the two treatment modes. Post hoc analysis indicated a greater increase in EI HB after 1 month (p=0.16) and 10 months (p=0.004) in AST than that in NDT, predominantly in the children with higher motor function (GMFCS Levels II and III). The results suggest that AST might improve mechanical efficiency without a corresponding gain in gross motor skills, especially in children with higher levels of motor function.