Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Changes in posture control across the life span--a systems approach.

M H Woollacott1, A Shumway-Cook

  • 1Institute of Neuroscience, University of Oregon, Eugene 97403.

Physical Therapy
|December 1, 1990
PubMed
Summary

Posture control develops throughout life, with muscle synergies and sensory inputs crucial for balance. Older adults experience delayed responses and balance difficulties, especially with reduced sensory input or muscle weakness.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Association of cognitive domains with postural instability/gait disturbance in Parkinson's disease.

Parkinsonism & related disorders·2015
Same author

The capacity to adapt to changing balance threats: a comparison of children with cerebral palsy and typically developing children.

Developmental neurorehabilitation·2007
Same author

The influence of a concurrent cognitive task on the compensatory stepping response to a perturbation in balance-impaired and healthy elders.

Gait & posture·2002
Same author

Compensatory stepping: the biomechanics of a preferred response among older adults.

Experimental aging research·2001
Same author

The translating platform paradigm: perturbation displacement waveform alters the postural response.

Gait & posture·2001
Same author

The interacting effects of cognitive demand and recovery of postural stability in balance-impaired elderly persons.

The journals of gerontology. Series A, Biological sciences and medical sciences·2001

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Biomechanics
  • Developmental Biology

Background:

  • Posture control is essential for voluntary movements like walking.
  • Developmental changes in posture control occur across the lifespan.
  • Sensory systems (vision, somatosensory, vestibular) are vital for maintaining balance.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To describe a systems approach to posture control development.
  • To examine posture control integration with voluntary tasks.
  • To analyze age-related changes in postural responses.

Main Methods:

  • Described a systems approach to posture control development.
  • Reviewed research on developmental gradients and sensory influences.
  • Analyzed studies on older adults' balance and postural responses.

Related Experiment Videos

Main Results:

  • Postural responses show a cephalocaudal development gradient.
  • Muscle synergies gain temporal organization with experience.
  • Older adults exhibit increased response latencies and disrupted temporal organization.
  • Older adults show increased coactivation of antagonist muscles and balance issues with reduced sensory input or ankle weakness.

Conclusions:

  • Posture control is a dynamic system developing across the lifespan.
  • Experience refines postural muscle synergies and temporal organization.
  • Age-related declines in posture control are linked to sensory processing and muscle function, similar to developmental stages in children.