0078 Diabetic patients with peripheral neuropathy have marked sensory deficits in the soles of their feet, which decreases their ability to maintain balance during daily activities. Previous studies have shown that subsensory mechanical noise (i.e., random vibration) applied to the soles of the feet significantly improves vibrotactile sensitivity and enhances posture control in humans, via a mechanism known as stochastic resonance. PURPOSE: The goal of this study was to demonstrate that quiet-standing postural sway of diabetic patients with peripheral neuropathy can be reduced by applying subsensory mechanical noise to the feet via vibrating insoles. METHODS: Eleven diabetic patients with (moderate to severe) peripheral neuropathy (aged 45–56 years) were asked to stand quietly on a pair of vibrating gel insoles. The sensory threshold to a vibrotactile noise signal was determined for each subject. Ten trials (5 with noise, applied at 90% of threshold, and 5 without noise, in random order) were performed, and the time-varying displacement of a shoulder marker was recorded by a Vicon motion analysis system for each trial. For each stimulus condition (noise and control), we compared the mean value of five sway parameters that are predictors of falls (i.e., ML RMS, average ML sway, AP length, sway speed, area ellipse) and three sway parameters from random-walk analysis (i.e., critical mean square displacement, long-term diffusion coefficient, long-term scaling exponent). RESULTS:All sway parameters decreased with the application of noise; area ellipse decreased significantly (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Shoe insoles that produce imperceptible random vibration may enable diabetic patients to overcome postural instability associated with diseaserelated sensory loss. Supported by NIH Grants AG08812, AG04390, HD37880, 1R43 DK60295