Abstract
The aim of this study was to compare the ability of older individuals to maintain an efficient upright stance in contexts of vestibular sensory manipulation, according to their physical activity status. Two groups of healthy older women (aged over 65) free from any disorders (i.e., neurological, motor and metabolic disorders) and vestibular disturbances, participated in this study. One group comprised participants who regularly practiced gentle physical activities, i.e., soft gym, aquarobic, active walking, ballroom dancing (active group, age: 73.4 (5.8) years, n = 17), and one group comprised participants who did not practice physical activities (non-active group, age: 73.7 (8.1) years, n = 17). The postural control of the two groups was compared in a bipedal reference condition with their eyes open and two vestibular sensory manipulation conditions (i.e., bipolar binaural galvanic vestibular stimulation (GVS) at 3 mA, in accordance with two designs). The main results indicate that there was no difference between the active and the non-active groups in all the conditions. It is likely that the aging process and the type of physical practice had limited the ability of the active group to counteract the effects of vestibular sensory manipulation on postural control more efficiently than the non-active group.
Highlights
The human ability to maintain an efficient upright stance in daily life requires the availability and the accuracy of sensory, integrating and motor systems (Massion, 1994)
The COPX and COPY velocities significantly increased in the galvanic vestibular stimulation (GVS)-R and the GVS-L conditions compared to the REF condition for the active and non-active groups (Figure 1)
The center of foot pressure (COP) surface and the COPX amplitude increased significantly in the GVS-R condition compared to the REF condition for the non-active group (Figure 2)
Summary
The human ability to maintain an efficient upright stance in daily life requires the availability and the accuracy of sensory, integrating and motor systems (Massion, 1994). The beneficial effects of physical activity on postural function have been demonstrated for older individuals (Perrin et al, 1999; Howe et al, 2007) such as a better use of sensory information and a more efficient motor output (Gauchard et al, 2001; Ribeiro and Oliveira, 2007). The main objective of these techniques was to alter or manipulate sensory information (i.e., afferents emanating from the visual, vestibular and somatosensory systems) in order to analyze postural
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