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A Longitudinal Assessment Of Standing Balance In Healthy Adults
Roger W Simmons1, Susan S Levy1, Nicole K Simmons2
1a Motor Control Laboratory, School of Exercise and Nutritional Sciences , San Diego State University , San Diego , California , USA.
Experimental Aging Research
|September 27, 2017
Summary
Healthy adults maintain standing balance with age by adjusting movement strategies. Increased reliance on ankle and hip strategies compensates for age-related postural instability, preserving overall balance performance.
Area of Science:
- Gerontology
- Biomechanics
- Human Physiology
Background:
- Longitudinal study assessing age-related changes in balance and movement strategies.
- Focus on healthy adults to understand normative aging processes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how standing balance and response strategies change over nearly two decades in healthy adults.
- To determine if changes in sensory input affect age-related balance adjustments.
Main Methods:
- 17 healthy adults (mean age 44.5 years) underwent balance assessments over 19.5 years.
- Participants stood on force platforms with manipulated visual and somatosensory information.
- Six tests evaluated postural control under varying sensory conditions.
Main Results:
- No significant decline in overall postural control or composite balance scores was observed.
- Significant age-related changes in response strategies were noted.
- Increased ankle strategy use on stable surfaces and hip strategy use on unstable surfaces were observed.
Conclusions:
- Healthy aging involves adaptive changes in movement strategies to maintain standing balance.
- Altered reliance on specific compensatory strategies explains preserved balance despite sensory challenges.
- These findings highlight the plasticity of the motor system in response to aging.
