Prolonged Standing Task Affects Adaptability of Postural Control in People With Parkinson’s Disease

Abstract

Background Studies on short-term upright quiet standing tasks have presented contradictory findings about postural control in people with Parkinson’s disease (pwPD). Prolonged trial durations might better depict body sway and discriminate pwPD and controls. Objective The aim of this study was to investigate postural control in pwPD during a prolonged standing task. Methods A total of 26 pwPD and 25 neurologically healthy individuals performed 3 quiet standing trials (60 s) before completing a constrained prolonged standing task for 15 minutes. Motion capture was used to record body sway (Vicon, 100 Hz). To investigate the body sway behavior during the 15 minutes of standing, the analysis was divided into three 5-minute-long phases: early, middle, and late. The following body sway parameters were calculated for the anterior-posterior (AP) and medial-lateral (ML) directions: velocity, root-mean-square, and detrended fluctuations analysis (DFA). The body sway area was also calculated. Two-way ANOVAs (group and phases) and 1-way ANOVA (group) were used to compare these parameters for the prolonged standing and quiet standing, respectively. Results pwPD presented smaller sway area ( P < .001), less complexity (DFA; AP: P < .009; ML: P < .01), and faster velocity (AP: P < .002; ML: P < .001) of body sway compared with the control group during the prolonged standing task. Although the groups swayed similarly (no difference for sway area) during quiet standing, they presented differences in sway area during the prolonged standing task ( P < .001). Conclusions Prolonged standing task reduced adaptability of the postural control system in pwPD. In addition, the prolonged standing task may better analyze the adaptability of the postural control system in pwPD.

The Effect of Standing Mats on Biomechanical Characteristics of Lower Limbs and Perceived Exertion for Healthy Individuals during Prolonged Standing

“…In terms of body balance ability, this study is the first to evaluate the effects of prolonged standing tasks on body balance ability on different standing surfaces in a young and healthy population. Previous studies have shown that prolonged standing tasks would reduce the adaptability of the posture control system in patients with Parkinson's disease or obesity [ 37 ], increasing the risk of falling [ 38 ]. This study also shows that prolonged standing tasks could also have a negative influence on the balance ability of young and healthy individuals with a potential mechanism that might be related to muscle fatigue.…”

The Role of the Diaphragm in Postural Stability and Visceral Function in Parkinson’s Disease

“…Postural instability may be related to the increased flexor muscle tone of the trunk which interferes with the projection of the center of mass to the base of support ( Schoneburg et al, 2013 ); a reduction of proprioception and an increase of fatigue of the musculoskeletal system may also involve ( Schoneburg et al, 2013 ; Moretto et al, 2021 ). In our study, the regression model suggested that diaphragm contraction velocity and excursion were higher in patients with poorer levels of control.…”

Using a spherical inverted pendulum and statokinesigram for modeling and evaluating quiet standing posture

“…This diagram is useful when diagnosing balance disorders. [8][9][10] However, due to the rather chaotic shape of the diagram, it requires further processing to extract diagnosis features for use in the clinical assessment of the quiet stance.…”