Multisensory visual-vestibular training improves visual heading estimation in younger and older adults

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Perception Psychology
• Gerontology

Background:

• Self-motion perception integrates visual, vestibular, and proprioceptive cues.
• Older adults exhibit altered multisensory integration, potentially increasing fall risk.
• Understanding age-related changes in self-motion perception is crucial for functional decline interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess if multisensory training with feedback enhances visual-vestibular self-motion heading perception.
• To compare training effects in older adults (OA) versus younger adults (YA).
• To investigate potential transfer effects to standing balance.

Main Methods:

• Participants (OA and YA) judged heading direction under vestibular-only, visual-only, and bimodal conditions.
• A 3-day training protocol involved 900 bimodal heading judgments with correctness feedback.
• Pre- and post-training assessments included heading precision/bias and standing balance.

Main Results:

• Overall heading perception precision improved post-training, primarily in the visual-only condition.
• A significant portion of OAs improved visual-only heading discrimination post-training.
• Optimal multisensory integration was observed in OAs pre- and post-training, while YAs showed improvement post-training.

Conclusions:

• Multisensory training can enhance unimodal visual heading perception.
• Specific training paradigms may improve self-motion perception in older adults.
• Further research can inform interventions for age-related perceptual declines.