Identification of (models of) balance control

In the control of balance three major groups of sensory information sources can be distinguished: the vestibular system, the visual system and the prorioceptive system. The quality of balance control relies on the ability to adaptively modify the relative weighting of each sensory modality depending on the environmental context. Whereas in healthy subjects there is redundant sensory information in order to maintain upright, in patients the absence or decrease of sensory information often results in an increase of falls. Although the literature on balance control is very rich, it is quite fragmented in that the integration of a well-established theory of balance control into the interpretation and design of the experiment is lacking. The importance of such theoretical based approach is important in order to understand the factors determining balance control and to use this knowledge to develop good diagnostic tests. The aim of the current project is to improve diagnosis and treatment of balance disorders by developing a method that is able to identify the different factors determining balance control and, as such, to relate neuromuscular disorders (impairments) with balance disorders (disabilities). To this end, a recently developed model of balance control will be further developed in combination with an experimental set-up in which the different sensory inputs will be isolated and the experimental conditions will be optimally controlled.