Similarities between the peripheral auditory and vestibular systems suggest that children with sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) may demonstrate vestibular and balance impairments. This hypothesis was studied in 40 children with severe to profound SNHL and unilateral cochlear implants (CI). Vestibular function was assessed with caloric, rotational, and vestibular evoked myogenic potential (VEMP) testing; balance was assessed with standardized static and dynamic tests. Horizontal semicircular canal function was abnormal in 53% (17/32) with caloric, and 39% (14/36) with rotational stimulation. Saccular function was absent bilaterally in 5/26 (19%) and unilaterally in 5/26 (19%) with VEMP. Balance abilities were significantly poorer (μ=12.9±5(SD)) than normal hearing controls (μ=17±5(SD); p=0.0006) and correlated best with horizontal canal function from rotational stimulation (p=0.004;R2=0.24). SNHL from meningitis was associated with worse balance function than other etiologies. Vestibular and balance dysfunction occurred in >1/3 of children with SNHL and CI, and is highly dependent on etiology.

Similarities between the peripheral auditory and vestibular systems suggest that children with sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) may demonstrate vestibular and balance impairments. This hypothesis was studied in 40 children with severe to profound SNHL and unilateral cochlear implants (CI). Vestibular function was assessed with caloric, rotational, and vestibular evoked myogenic potential (VEMP) testing; balance was assessed with standardized static and dynamic tests. Horizontal semicircular canal function was abnormal in 53% (17/32) with caloric, and 39% (14/36) with rotational stimulation. Saccular function was absent bilaterally in 5/26 (19%) and unilaterally in 5/26 (19%) with VEMP. Balance abilities were significantly poorer (μ=12.9±5(SD)) than normal hearing controls (μ=17±5(SD); p=0.0006) and correlated best with horizontal canal function from rotational stimulation (p=0.004;R2=0.24). SNHL from meningitis was associated with worse balance function than other etiologies. Vestibular and balance dysfunction occurred in >1/3 of children with SNHL and CI, and is highly dependent on etiology.

Purpose: The primary purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of a progressive exercise program on vestibular control of standing balance, in older adults referred for home care physiotherapy because of balance impairment. Methods: Ability to use vestibular inputs for postural control in standing was assessed using the Clinical Test of Sensory Interaction and Balance (CTSIB). Participants who had CTSIBTest 5 scores of < 15 seconds were accepted into the study. Participants were randomly assigned to an 8 week intervention of progressive balance exercise targeting ability to use vestibular control and high intensity progressive resistance exercise (PRE) or high intensity PRE only. Results: The difference in CTSIBTest 5 scores of the RBE Group (median 23.3 s) was greater than the difference in CTSIBTest 5 scores for the RE Group (median 0.60 s) (W = 18.0, p <0.05). Conclusions: The results of this study provide preliminary evidence that the ability to use vestibular control in older adults, referred for home care physiotherapy for balance impairment, can be modified by progressive balance training and resistance exercise but not by resistance exercise alone.

<p>Reconstructing locomotor patterns from fossils is crucial for understanding the origins of primates and important transitions in various primate clades. Recent studies suggest that the semicircular canals of the inner ear provide evidence about locomotion. The canals sense rotational head accelerations and drive reflexes essential for normal movement. Because bony aspects of canal morphology influence canal sensitivity, this system can be studied in osteologic specimens and fossils. Variation in canal morphology in living and, by inference, extinct primates has been attributed to interspecific differences in locomotor behavior. However, the manner in which movement selects for canal morphology is debated, alternative scenarios are plausible, and no relevant measurements are available documenting head movements in primates.</p><p>To refine proposed links between canal morphology and locomotor function, and to resolve conflicting functional interpretations, this study examines head rotations in lemurs and lorises exhibiting diverse locomotor behaviors. Three-dimensional kinematic analyses were used to characterize angular velocities of the head during locomotion. These data are used to test hypotheses concerning intraspecific, interspecific, and body-size dependent variation in head rotations. Cranial CT scans are used to model canal sensitivity to rotations in different directions. Observed patterns of head rotation are compared to predicted patterns of sensitivity to test hypotheses about the relationship between locomotor behavior and canal design.</p><p>Evaluation of existing locomotor inferences reveals that brain size exerts a significant effect on canal size and that the prevailing equations for predicting agility from body and canal size are highly inaccurate. Intraspecific comparisons between maps of observed angular velocity and predicted sensitivity allow identification of map types associated with different general locomotor modes and do not support existing hypotheses about the primary selective forces acting on canal morphology. The new data are used to formulate and test a novel "fast-accurate hypothesis" to explain why all vertebrates are more sensitive to rotations about some axes than others. The fast-accurate hypothesis stipulates that angular velocities presented about axes of mean sensitivity are most accurately interpreted by the brain, and that selection aligns axes of mean sensitivity with axes of habitually fast rotation because accurate perception of rapid rotations confers survival benefit. The fast-accurate hypothesis was used to predict which features of the canals should be correlated with high mean angular velocities of head movement. Novel equations that predict behavior from these newly identified canal morphologies were generated and found to outperform existing equations when tested on the original sample of 11 strepsirrhine species.</p> / Dissertation

名古屋大学博士学位論文 学位の種類 : 博士(医学)(課程) 学位授与年月日:平成22年9月28日 山崎雅弘氏の博士論文として提出された

Thesis (M.S.)--Florida State University, 2004. / Advisor: Dr. Richard L. Hyson, Florida State University, College of Arts and Sciences, Dept. of Psychology. Title and description from dissertation home page (viewed 6/16/04). Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M. Sc.)--York University, 1998. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves. Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/yorku/fullcit?pMQ39249.

published_or_final_version / Physiology / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / Physiology / Master / Master of Philosophy

Purpose: The primary purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of a progressive exercise program on vestibular control of standing balance, in older adults referred for home care physiotherapy because of balance impairment. Methods: Ability to use vestibular inputs for postural control in standing was assessed using the Clinical Test of Sensory Interaction and Balance (CTSIB). Participants who had CTSIBTest 5 scores of < 15 seconds were accepted into the study. Participants were randomly assigned to an 8 week intervention of progressive balance exercise targeting ability to use vestibular control and high intensity progressive resistance exercise (PRE) or high intensity PRE only. Results: The difference in CTSIBTest 5 scores of the RBE Group (median 23.3 s) was greater than the difference in CTSIBTest 5 scores for the RE Group (median 0.60 s) (W = 18.0, p <0.05). Conclusions: The results of this study provide preliminary evidence that the ability to use vestibular control in older adults, referred for home care physiotherapy for balance impairment, can be modified by progressive balance training and resistance exercise but not by resistance exercise alone.