Development of Postural Control - Systems Interactions

Question 1

What is needed for the development of postural control?

Answer 1

Musculoskeletal (synergies; structure; growth)
Sensory (organization - vision; somatosensation; vestibular)
Cognition (attentional abilities; perception - experiences)

Question 2

What do many of the motor milestones within the first-year focus on?

Answer 2

Attaining new postures and gaining balance

Question 3

True/False: Could balance and control in one posture limit the progression to the next posture?

Answer 3

True

Question 4

What does mature postural control include?

Answer 4

Static balance
Anticipatory balance
Adaptive (reactive) balance

Question 5

What is static balance?

Answer 5

Maintaining steady state balance (body not in motion)

Question 6

What is anticipatory balance?

Answer 6

Adjustments are made before a movement pattern to maintain balance (prior experiences; cognitive abilities)

Question 7

What is adaptive/reactive balance?

Answer 7

Adjustments are made in the moment (environmental demands)

Question 8

Postural control develops based on what two frames of reference?

Answer 8

Gravity and support surface

Question 9

In what manner does anticipatory control follow?

Answer 9

Occurs in a cephalocaudal manner (head to the toes)

Question 10

True/False: Does anticipatory control slightly proceed control within a posture?

Answer 10

True (body often gets ready for movement before the actual movement happens)

Question 11

True/False: Adaptive control in various positions follows control within the posture?

Answer 11

True (must first learn to control in certain position before developing the ability to react and adapt to changes in that position)

Question 12

How long does it typically take to develop adaptive control?

Answer 12

Several months (depends on the motor behavior)

Question 13

How many stages of sitting are there?

Answer 13

Four

Question 14

Describe the first stage of sitting

Answer 14

4 mo.
Unable to independently control posture (leans forward quite a bit)

Question 15

Describe the second stage of sitting

Answer 15

5 mo.
Still requires support to maintain upright posture; Occurs in “all or nothing” pattern (forward and backward movements; overcorrections)

Question 16

Describe the third stage of sitting

Answer 16

6 mo.
Demonstrates improved control (decreased sway but still more compared to the adult)

Question 17

Describe the fourth stage of sitting

Answer 17

8 mo.
Maintains stability well

Question 18

What are the stages of motor control (in order)?

Answer 18

Mobility
Stability
Controlled mobility
Skill

Question 19

What are other important systems w/in the body that are important in postural control?

Answer 19

Cognition
Musculoskeletal (strength; endurance)
Neuromuscular (coordination)
Cardiopulmonary
Perception (sensory; body scheme; spatial abilities)

Question 20

What are the three components of the sensory system involved in postural control?

Answer 20

Somatosensation
Vision
Proprioception

Question 21

What is sensation?

Answer 21

Once activated by a sensory receptors and sends information to the brain (interpreted)
Can be visual, auditory, tactile, vestibular, etc.

Question 22

What is integration (perception)?

Answer 22

A multistage process in the brain that allows motor systems to function together (make sense; putting everything together)
Involves selecting, processing, organization, and integrating information received from senses

Question 23

What is differentiation?

Answer 23

The progression from gross movement (immature) to precise movement (intentional)
Moving intralimb segments separately

Question 24

True/False: Does visual acuity vary significantly across development?

Answer 24

True

Question 25

Vision - 1st mo.

Answer 25

Functionally useful but unrefined (shapes, movement, shadows)

Question 26

Vision - 6 mo.

Answer 26

Improvements in vision are seen (self-propelled locomotor related tasks)

Question 27

Vision - 5 yrs.

Answer 27

20/30 acuity

Question 28

Vision - 10 yrs.

Answer 28

20/20 visual acuity

Question 29

True/False: Does visual acuity decline in the aging population?

Answer 29

True (yellowing of lens; foggy)

Question 30

At what age does visual acuity start to decline?

Answer 30

40 yrs.

Question 31

What is the importance of depth perception?

Answer 31

Allows individuals to perceive space in 3 dimensions

Question 32

What is the purpose of kinesthetic/somatosensory information?

Answer 32

Provides us w/ feedback and feedforward information (body position relative to self)

Question 33

What is important about kinesthetic/somatosensory information in regard to infants?

Answer 33

Helps the infant develop a body scheme (anatomical relationships; body in reference to gravity)

Question 34

Body schemes allow the development of what?

Answer 34

Postural networks (exploration; relationship/identification between body parts) Awareness of self Laterality Directionality

Question 35

Which type of data do infants rely heavily on during development (at the expense of somatosensory and vestibular input)?

Answer 35

Visual data

Question 36

When mouthing objects, what initial connections are made?

Answer 36

Connections between vision and kinesthetic information

Question 37

What contributes to improved use of kinesthetic information?

Answer 37

Experience and manipulation of objects (near adult - 8; adult - 11)

Question 38

What changes in vision are seen in the aging population?

Answer 38

Decreases is visual acuity Decreased illumination (yellowing of lens) Other conditions (cataracts, glaucoma, etc.) Higher threshold for detecting perception of motion

Question 39

What age-related sensory change may be a concerning link for loss of balance (static and dynamic)?

Answer 39

Changes in proprioception

Question 40

What other sensory changes may an older adult undergo?

Answer 40

Cutaneous sensitivity Sensitivity to temperature and pain Vibratory sensitivity