Article

Postural control is known to depend on sensory and cognitive factors. Little is
known about how children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) regulate static
balance, and to what extent vision and cognition contribute to the regulation of
balance in this group. We compared a group of children with mild ASD and a group
of age- and gender-matched controls on various postural tasks, standing on a Wii
Balance Board. We tested a sensory disturbance (closing the eyes) and a cognitive
disturbance (word memorization) on the control of quiet standing. Analysis of
center-of-pressure excursions revealed moderate effects of cognitive load, but
clear effects of vision. We found a greater destabilizing effect of closing the
eyes (greater postural excursions in the medio-lateral direction) for the ASD
group than for controls. No group differences were found on word recall and on a
standardized balance test (Movement Assessment Battery for Children; M-ABC2). We
suggest that the postural effects reflect tighter coupling between vision and
motor adjustments in ASD than in controls, which is consistent with recent
suggestions of greater reliance on vision in this group.
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Langue : ANGLAIS