Balance

Balance

1. State of equilibrium, maintaining COG, and upright posture

2. Made up of somatosensory, visual, and vestibular

   • Somatosensory
     • Located in joints, skin, muscles, and ligaments
     • Proprioceptive info about length, tension, pain, pressure, and joint positioning
     • How do we assess?
       • Can be with eyes open versus close but mainly focuses on change of surface
       • What do we look out for?
         • Unsteadiness due to fear of falling or lack of postural strategies
   • Visual
     • Using vision to determine motion of objects, oneself in the environment, orientation, and postural movement
     • Children rely on this heavily
     • How do you assess?
       • In a quiet standing position with eyes open versus close
       • What do we look out for?
         • Hemianopsia, pursuits, saccades, double vision, and gaze control
   • Vestibualr
     • Provides feed back to CNS on relation of head with gravity
     • semicircular canals filled with endolymph (fluid)
       • Response based on this fluid in the head
     • Based on acceleration/deceleration
     • How do we assess?
       • DixHallpike maneuver, bithermal caloric testing, head thrust sign, and vestibuloocular reflex test
       • What do we look out for?
         • Feeling of fear, dizziness, feeling of nausea