Influence of Visual Control, Conduction, and Central Integration on Static and Dynamic Balance in Healthy Older Adults

Abstract

Aging is associated with decreased balance abilities, resulting in an increased risk of fall. In order to appreciate the visual, somatosensory, and central signals involved in balance control, sophisticated methods of posturography assessment have been developed, using static and dynamic tests, eventually associated with electromyographic measurements. We applied such methods to a population of healthy older adults in order to appreciate the respective importance of each of these sensorial inputs in aging individuals. Posture control parameters were recorded on a force-measuring platform in 41 healthy young (age 28.5 ± 5.9 years) and 50 older (age 69.8 ± 5.9 years) adults, using a static test and two dynamic tests performed by all individuals first with eyes open, then with eyes closed. The distance covered by the center of foot pressure, sway area, and anteroposterior oscillations were significantly higher, with eyes open or closed, in older people than in young subjects. Significant differences were noted in dynamic tests with longer latency responses in the group of old people. Dynamic recordings in a sinusoidal test had a more regular pattern when performed eyes open in both groups and evidenced significantly greater instability in old people. These data suggest that vision remains important in maintaining postural control while conduction and central integration become less efficient with age.

Do spike insoles enhance postural stability and plantar-surface cutaneous sensitivity in the elderly?

“…Participants stood on a forceplate (Equi+, model PF01; Aix les Bains, France) with eyes closed, arms at their sides and feet abducted at 30°with the medial borders of the heels separated by 5 cm. As vision is a predominant sensory system in the elderly (Perrin et al 1997), and as no significant effect of plantar cutaneous inputs could be seen when vision was available (Meyer et al 2004a), this information was suppressed in order to explore the influence of the cutaneous cues alone. Participants were asked to sway as little as possible.…”

Developmental changes in postural sway in children at high and low risk for developing alcohol-related disorders

“…Due to the importance of vision and the oculomotor control involved in maintaining balance, closing the eyes during performance of balance tests increases sway both in a no alcohol condition (Hill and Steinhauer 1993b;Hill et (Ledin and Odkvist 1991). Results of these studies suggest the importance of vestibular and oculomotor integration.As is the case with other types of motor performance, balance appears to improve with age in children (Odenrick and Sandstedt 1984;Usui et al 1995) and decline with advancing age in older adults (Perrin et al 1997;Schultz et al 1997). In children, postural sway has been shown to decrease markedly between the ages of 3 and 5 years and then slowly after age 6, with boys showing more sway under the age of 10 than girls (Usui et al 1995).…”

Postural balance in subjects over the age of 50

“…The influence of vision on equilibrium seems to be controversial. Some authors reported a greater postural sway in both planes after closing of the eyes [14,15]. In contrast, other researchers observed little effect or even its absence in postural sway [16].…”