Single-axis vibrotactile feedback of trunk tilt provided in real-time has previously been shown to significantly reduce the root-mean-square (RMS) trunk sway in subjects with vestibular loss during single-axis perturbation. This research examines the effect of multi-directional vibrotactile feedback on postural sway during continuous multi-directional surface perturbations when the subjects' ey...

Introduction Interdisciplinary research has contributed greatly to an improved understanding of the vestibular system. To date, however, very little research has focused on the vestibular system's somatosensory afferents. To ensure the diagnostic quality of vestibular somatosensory afferent data, especially the extra cranial afferents, stimulation of the vestibular balance system has to be prec...

CONTEXT Injuries involving the lumbar spine and lower extremities in athletes are among the most disabling. Lack of trunk and hip strength may predispose athletes to such injuries. OBJECTIVE To measure trunk endurance and hip strength in a population of National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III athletes. DESIGN Cross-sectional design of 5 collegiate athletic teams. SETTING An ...

Trunk mobility impairment can cause balance, postural and gait challenges during overground level walking in patients with different pathologies. Assessment of the rotations of the trunk during walking with an abnormal gait can provide knowledge required for a better understanding of the nature of the motor control deficit and support decision-making in patient rehabilitation. A method based on...

Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) is the most common form of scoliosis and usually affects young girls. Studies mostly describe the differences between scoliotic and non-scoliotic girls and focus primarily on a single set of parameters derived from spinal and pelvis morphology, posture or standing imbalance. No study addressed all these three biomechanical aspects simultaneously in pre-brac...

For targeted prevention of falls, it is necessary to identify individuals with balance impairments. To test the sensitivity of measures of variability, local stability and orbital stability of trunk kinematics to balance impairments during gait, we used galvanic vestibular stimulation (GVS) to impair balance in 12 young adults while walking on a treadmill at different speeds. Inertial sensors w...

Postmammillary decerebrated cats can generate stepping on a moving treadmill belt when the brain stem or spinal cord is stimulated tonically and the hindquarters are supported both vertically and laterally. While adequate propulsion seems to be generated by the hindlimbs under these conditions, the ability to sustain equilibrium during locomotion has not been examined extensively. We found that...

[Purpose] Our objective was to evaluate the residual dynamic and static functionality in the sitting position of hemiplegic stroke patients who require help to pull their lower garments up and down during toileting. [Subjects and Methods] The subjects were 11 hemiplegic patients. We gathered data on the patients' motor paralysis, sensory capacity, lower extremity muscle strength, trunk control,...