RecruitingNCT07735078

Vestibular Balance-Cognition Dual-Task Digital System: Development of a Smart Rehabilitation Platform for the Elderly and Prediction of Balance Function Risks

Sponsor

National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University

Enrollment

55 participants

Start Date

Feb 10, 2025

Study Type

OBSERVATIONAL

Conditions

Vestibular Dysfunction Dizziness Balance Assessment Falls (Accidents) in Old Age Dual-Task Performance Cognitive Function Decline

Summary

This study is being done to better understand how vestibular problems and thinking abilities (such as attention and mental flexibility) are related in older adults, and how doing a balance task and a thinking task at the same time affects their performance. Older adults will first complete questionnaires and simple paper-and-pencil tests of attention, memory, and mental rotation while seated. They will then perform standing balance tasks on a portable force platform under different conditions (eyes open, eyes closed, standing on a foam surface) and will repeat some of the thinking tasks at the same time. Next, participants will walk on a treadmill while wearing small motion sensors, both with and without added thinking tasks such as serial subtraction and digit reordering. The total testing time is about 90 minutes. Two groups will be included: healthy older adults and older adults who have had dizziness or falls in the past two years. By comparing these groups, the study aims to provide a basis for designing future dual-task assessment and training programs to reduce balance problems and falls in older adults.

Eligibility

Min Age: 55 Years

Inclusion Criteria5

Community-dwelling adults aged 55 years or older.
Able to walk at least 30 meters independently or with the use of a walking aid.
Able to understand the study procedures and communicate in Mandarin or Taiwanese.
Adequate corrected vision to go out independently.
Able to participate in 45-minute sessions of moderate-intensity exercise once per week.

Exclusion Criteria4

Severe central or peripheral neurological diseases.
Blindness or deafness.
Inability to communicate verbally or to understand simple instructions.
Current fractures or major joint injuries.

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Interventions

DEVICEInstrumented balance and gait assessment using wearable inertial sensors

Participants undergo a series of static and dynamic balance and gait assessments in a motion analysis laboratory while wearing body-segment inertial measurement units (IMUs). The sensors provide real-time signals for interaction with the evaluation system during single-task and dual-task standing and walking tests.

OTHERQuestionnaires and paper-based cognitive tests

Participants complete a battery of self-report questionnaires and paper-based cognitive tests after explanation by a physical therapist. Instruments include dizziness and balance scales, the Activities-specific Balance Confidence (ABC) scale, and cognitive tests such as the WAIS-III Taiwan Digit Odd-Even Sequencing Test, Taiwan Stroop Word-Color Test, path judgment tasks, and mental rotation tasks. Questionnaires are administered verbally and responses recorded in writing.