Article

Fear and anxiety induced by threatening scenarios, such as standing on elevated
surfaces, have been shown to influence postural control in young adults. There is
also a need to understand how postural threat influences postural control in
populations with balance deficits and risk of falls.
However, safety and
feasibility issues limit opportunities to place such populations in physically
threatening scenarios. Virtual reality (VR) has successfully been used to
simulate threatening environments, although it is unclear whether the same
postural changes can be elicited by changes in virtual and real threat
conditions. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to compare the effects of
real and virtual heights on changes to standing postural control, electrodermal
activity (EDA) and psycho-social state. Seventeen subjects stood at low and high
heights in both real and virtual environments matched in scale and visual detail.
A repeated measures ANOVA revealed increases with height, independent of visual
environment, in EDA, anxiety, fear, and center of pressure (COP) frequency, and
decreases with height in perceived stability, balance confidence and COP
amplitude. Interaction effects were seen for fear and COP mean position; where
real elicited larger changes with height than VR. This study demonstrates the
utility of VR, as simulated heights resulted in changes to postural, autonomic
and psycho-social measures similar to those seen at real heights. As a result, VR
may be a useful tool for studying threat related changes in postural control in
populations at risk of falls, and to screen and rehabilitate balance deficits associated with fear and anxiety.
CI - Copyright (c) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Langue : ANGLAIS