Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

The influence of dynamic visual cues for postural control in children aged 7–12 years

  • Research Article
  • Published:
Experimental Brain Research Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Young children rely heavily on vision for postural control during the transition to walking. Although by 10 years of age, children have automatic postural responses similar to adults, it is not clear when the integration of sensory inputs becomes fully developed. The purpose of this study was to examine this transition in the sensory integration process in children aged 7–12 years. Healthy children and adults stood on a fixed or sway-referenced support surface while viewing full-field optic flow scenes that moved sinusoidally (0.1 and 0.25 Hz) in an anterior–posterior direction. Center of pressure was recorded, and measures of sway amplitude and phase were calculated at each stimulus frequency. Children and adults had significant postural responses during approximately two-thirds of the trials. In adults, there was a 90% decrease in sway on the fixed surface compared with the sway-referenced surface, but only a 50% decrease in children. The phase between the optic flow stimulus and postural response in children led that of adults by 52° at 0.1 Hz and by 15° at 0.25 Hz. Adults and children aged 7–12 years have similar ability to use dynamic visual cues for postural control. However, 7–12-year-old children do not utilize somatosensory cues to stabilize posture to the same extent as adults when visual and somatosensory cues are conflicting.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Barela JA, Godoi D, Junior PBF, Polastri PF (2000) Visual information and body sway coupling in infants during sitting acquisition. Infant Behav Dev 23:285–297

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barela JA, Jeka JJ, Clark JE (2003) Postural control in children. Coupling to dynamic somatosensory information. Exp Brain Res 150:434–442

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bertenthal BI, Bai DL (1989) Infants’ sensitivity to optical flow for controlling posture. Dev Psychol 25:936–945

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bertenthal BI, Rose JL, Bai DL (1997) Perception-action coupling in the development of visual control of posture. J Exp Psychol Hum Percept Perform 23:1631–1643

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bertenthal BI, Boker SM, Xu M (2000) Analysis of the perception-action cycle for visually induced postural sway in 9-month-old sitting infants. Infant Behav Dev 23:299–315

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Butterworth G, Hicks L (1977) Visual proprioception and postural stability in infancy. A developmental study. Perception 6:255–262

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Cherng RJ, Chen JJ, Su FC (2001) Vestibular system in performance of standing balance of children and young adults under altered sensory conditions. Percept Mot Skills 92:1167–1179

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Delorme A, Frigon JY, Lagace C (1989) Infants’ reactions to visual movement of the environment. Perception 18:667–673

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Dietz V, Gollhofer A, Kleiber M, Trippel M (1992) Regulation of bipedal stance: dependency on “load” receptors. Exp Brain Res 89:229–231

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Dijkstra TM, Schoner G, Giese MA, Gielen CC (1994) Frequency dependence of the action-perception cycle for postural control in a moving visual environment: relative phase dynamics. Biol Cybern 71:489–501

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Forssberg H, Nashner LM (1982) Ontogenetic development of postural control in man: adaptation to altered support and visual conditions during stance. J Neurosci 2:545–552

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Foster EC, Sveistrup H, Woollacott MH (1996) Transitions in visual proprioception: A cross-sectional developmental study of the effect of visual flow on postural control. J Mot Behav 28:101–112

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Foudriat BA, Di Fabio RP, Anderson JH (1993) Sensory organization of balance responses in children 3–6 years of age: a normative study with diagnostic implications. Int J Pediatr Otorhinolaryngol 27:255–271

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Giese MA, Dijkstra TM, Schoner G, Gielen CC (1996) Identification of the nonlinear state-space dynamics of the action-perception cycle for visually induced postural sway. Biol Cybern 74:427–437

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Higgins CI, Campos JJ, Kermoian R (1996) Effect of self-produced locomotion on infant postural compensation to optic flow. Dev Psychol 32:836–841

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Isableu B, Ohlmann T, Cremieux J, Amblard B (1998) How dynamic visual field dependence-independence interacts with the visual contribution to postural control. Hum Mov Sci 17:367–391

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jasko JG, Loughlin PJ, Redfern MS, Sparto PJ (2003) The role of central and peripheral vision in the control of upright posture during anterior–posterior optic flow. Proceedings of the 27th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Biomechanics

  • Jeka JJ, Schoner G, Dijkstra T, Ribeiro P, Lackner JR (1997) Coupling of fingertip somatosensory information to head and body sway. Exp Brain Res 113:475–483

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jouen F, Lepecq J-C, Gapenne O, Bertenthal BI (2000) Optic flow sensitivity in neonates. Infant Behav Dev 23:271–284

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kamm K, Thelen E, Jensen JL (1990) A dynamical systems approach to motor development. Phys Ther 70:763–775

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kay BA, Warren WH Jr (2001) Coupling of posture and gait: mode locking and parametric excitation. Biol Cybern 85:89–106

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kirshenbaum N, Riach CL, Starkes JL (2001) Non-linear development of postural control and strategy use in young children: a longitudinal study. Exp Brain Res 140:420–431

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • van der Kooij H, Jacobs R, Koopman B, van der Helm F (2001) An adaptive model of sensory integration in a dynamic environment applied to human stance control. Biol Cybern 84:103–115

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lee DN, Aronson E (1974) Visual proprioceptive control of standing in human infants. Percept Psychophys 15:529–532

    Google Scholar 

  • Lee DN, Lishman JR (1977) Vision—the most efficient source of proprioceptive information for balance control. Agressologie 18:83–94

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lestienne F, Soechting J, Berthoz A (1977) Postural readjustments induced by linear motion of visual scenes. Exp Brain Res 28:363–384

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Loughlin PJ, Redfern MS (2001) Spectral characteristics of visually induced postural sway in healthy elderly and healthy young subjects. IEEE Trans Neural Syst Rehab Eng 9:24–30

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Magnusson M, Enbom H, Johansson R, Pyykko I (1990a) Significance of pressor input from the human feet in anterior-posterior postural control. The effect of hypothermia on vibration-induced body-sway. Acta Otolaryngol (Stockh) 110:182–188

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Magnusson M, Enbom H, Johansson R, Wiklund J (1990b) Significance of pressor input from the human feet in lateral postural control. The effect of hypothermia on galvanically induced body-sway. Acta Otolaryngol (Stockh) 110:321–327

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Mardia KV, Jupp PE (2000) Directional Statistics. John Wiley and Sons, Chichester, England

    Google Scholar 

  • Nashner LM (1971) A model describing vestibular detection of body sway motion. Acta Otolaryngol (Stockh) 72: 429–436

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Nougier V, Bard C, Fleury M, Teasdale N (1998) Contribution of central and peripheral vision to the regulation of stance: developmental aspects. J Exp Child Psychol 68:202–215

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Oie KS, Kiemel T, Jeka JJ (2002) Multisensory fusion: simultaneous re-weighting of vision and touch for the control of human posture. Cognit Brain Res 14:164–176

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Percival DB (1994) Spectral Analysis of Univariate and Bivariate Time Series. In: Stanford JL, Vardeman SB (eds) Statistical methods for physical science. Academic Press, New York, pp 313–348

    Google Scholar 

  • Peterka RJ (2002) Sensorimotor integration in human postural control. J Neurophysiol 88:1097–1118

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Peterka RJ, Benolken MS (1995) Role of somatosensory and vestibular cues in attenuating visually induced human postural sway. Exp Brain Res 105:101–110

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Peterka RJ, Black FO (1990a) Age-related changes in human posture control: motor coordination tests. J Vestib Res 1:87–96

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Peterka RJ, Black FO (1990b) Age-related changes in human posture control: sensory organization tests. J Vestib Res 1:73–85

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Portfors-Yeomans CV, Riach CL (1995) Frequency characteristics of postural control of children with and without visual impairment. Dev Med Child Neurol 37:456–463

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Riach CL, Hayes KC (1987) Maturation of postural sway in young children. Dev Med Child Neurol 29:650–658

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Schmuckler MA (1997) Children’s postural sway in response to low- and high-frequency visual information for oscillation. J Exp Psychol Hum Percept Perform 23:528–545

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Schoner G (1991) Dynamic theory of action-perception patterns: the “moving room” paradigm. Biol Cybern 64:455–462

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Shumway-Cook A, Woollacott MH (1985) The growth of stability: postural control from a developmental perspective. J Mot Behav 17:131–147

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sparto PJ, Schor RH (2004) Directional Statistics. In: Stergiou N (ed) Innovative analyses of human movement. Human Kinetics, Champaign

    Google Scholar 

  • Sparto PJ, Jasko JG, Loughlin PJ (2004) Detecting postural responses to sinusoidal sensory inputs: a statistical approach. IEEE Trans Neural Syst Rehab Eng 12:360–366

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stoffregen TA (1985) Flow structure versus retinal location in the optical control of stance. J Exp Psychol Hum Percept Perform 11:554–565

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Stoffregen TA, Schmuckler MA, Gibson EJ (1987) Use of central and peripheral optical flow in stance and locomotion in young walkers. Perception 16:113–119

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Thelen E, Kelso JAS, Fogel A (1987) Self-organizing systems and infant motor development. Dev Rev 7:39–65

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Winter DA, Patla AE, Prince F, Ishac M, Gielo-Perczak K (1998) SEPSness control of balance in quiet standing. J Neurophysiol 80:1211–1221

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

This research was supported in part by the National Institutes of Health under Grants K25-AG01049, P30-DC05205, R01-DC02490, and by the Eye and Ear Foundation. In addition, we would like to thank Dr. Larry Hodges, Chad Wingrave, Sabarish Babu, Leigh Mahoney, and Jeffrey Jacobson for providing technical assistance.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physical Therapy, University of Pittsburgh, 6035 Forbes Tower, Pittsburgh, PA, 15260, USA

    Patrick J. Sparto & Joseph M. Furman

  2. Department of Bioengineering, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Patrick J. Sparto, Mark S. Redfern, Jeff G. Jasko & Joseph M. Furman

  3. Department of Otolaryngology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Patrick J. Sparto, Mark S. Redfern, Margaretha L. Casselbrant, Ellen M. Mandel & Joseph M. Furman

  4. Department of Pediatric Otolaryngology, Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Margaretha L. Casselbrant & Ellen M. Mandel

Authors
  1. Patrick J. Sparto
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Mark S. Redfern
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Jeff G. Jasko
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Margaretha L. Casselbrant
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Ellen M. Mandel
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Joseph M. Furman
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Patrick J. Sparto.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Sparto, P.J., Redfern, M.S., Jasko, J.G. et al. The influence of dynamic visual cues for postural control in children aged 7–12 years. Exp Brain Res 168, 505–516 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-005-0109-8

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-005-0109-8

Keywords

Search

Navigation