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Age-Related Changes in Temporal Binding Involving Auditory and Vestibular Inputs
Alexander K Malone1, Michelle E Hungerford2,3, Spencer B Smith4
1ENT and Allergy Associates of Florida, Boca Raton, Florida.
Seminars in Hearing
|February 19, 2024
Summary
Aging extends the time the brain needs to combine sensory inputs, potentially causing imbalance. This study found older adults have a significantly longer vestibular temporal binding window (TBW) than younger adults.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Gerontology
- Sensory Integration
Background:
- Maintaining balance relies on integrating multisensory information, including visual, vestibular, and proprioceptive signals.
- Sensory inputs are processed asynchronously due to biological constraints, with the brain integrating them within a temporal binding window (TBW).
- Aging is known to prolong the TBW, potentially increasing temporal uncertainty and contributing to age-related balance deficits.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the effect of aging on the vestibular-related temporal binding window (TBW).
- To determine if a prolonged TBW contributes to imbalance in older adults, independent of peripheral vestibular function.
Main Methods:
- Compared vestibular-related TBW in younger and older adults using sinusoidal rotations and auditory stimuli.
- Participants underwent 0.5 Hz sinusoidal rotations about the earth-vertical axis.
- An alternating dichotic auditory stimulus with varied phase was presented to determine the TBW, defined as the time range for perceived simultaneity (≥75% of trials).
Main Results:
- The mean TBW was significantly longer in older subjects (560 ± 52 ms) compared to younger subjects (286 ± 56 ms).
- TBW correlated with vestibular sensitivity in younger adults.
- This relationship between TBW and vestibular sensitivity was not observed in older adults.
Conclusions:
- Aging prolongs the vestibular-related temporal binding window (TBW).
- A prolonged TBW may be a key mechanism contributing to age-related balance impairments.
- This effect appears independent of changes in peripheral vestibular function.
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