Influence of Visual Dependence on Inter-Segmental Coordination during Upright Stance in Cerebral Palsy

Abstract

The presence of visual dependence as an influential factor on the development of functional stability in ambulatory individuals with cerebral palsy (CP) was studied in 22 adults with spastic bilateral CP, 11 of whom were considered visually dependent, and 18 healthy adults. Participants stood upright during pitch plane disturbances of the visual field and support surface. Intersegmental coordination behaviors were assessed by fitting trajectories of adjacent body segments to an ellipse. Mixed-model repeated measures ANOVAs were performed on ellipse orientation angle and area. Dissimilar stabilizing strategies adopted by the two groups with CP imply that visual dependence impacts postural control. Postural reorganization in response to visual flow in all groups indicates that we cannot ignore perceptual aspects of postural control when designing therapeutic interventions.

Keywords:

• balance
• optic flow
• virtual reality
• rehabilitation

Acknowledgements

We thank our participants for being involved. We also thank Cerebral Palsy Research Registry for their assistance with recruitment.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by NIH-NICHD grant R01HD069769 awarded to Dr. Richard T. Lauer and Shriners Hospitals for Children Postdoctoral Fellowship 84308-PHI awarded to Dr. Yawen Yu.