Balance Disorders News: New Ipod-like device to help!

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Portable device assists those combating balance disorders

14 Jul 2005 Medical News Today

'Ipod-like' device moving from research to commercialization

Researchers at Oregon Health & Science University's Neurological

Sciences Institute and the University of Bologna have developed a

portable " Ipod-like " device that can be used to help correct balance

disorders. Scientists believe this new device, based on auditory

feedback of balance, can be worn on the belt like a pager to provide

regular therapy for patients with balance disorders, improving their

day-to-day activities. The research is published in the current

edition of the Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.

" We believe this type of device can become an important tool in

combating balance disorders associated with problems like vestibular

loss diabetic neuropathy, or Parkinson's disease, where a person's

ability to maintain balance is impaired, " explained Fay Horak, Ph.D.,

a senior scientist at the NSI and senior author of the paper. " In

fact, in early testing, research subjects with balance disorders who

have used the device have shown significant improvement. We believe

the nervous system can substitute auditory cues for missing or

inaccurate sensory information from other senses important for

balance, such as from sensors in the inner ear and from muscles and

skin. "

The balance feedback device acts much lot like a carpenter's level in

alerting the subject to how much they are leaning outside of a

predetermined central " safe-zone. " The device is connected to a pair

of headphones and hooked to the subject's belt. When activated,

subjects receive audio cues to let them know how their body is

balancing.

" Different tones and intensities tell subjects when they are leaning

outside of their central safe zone, " explains Marco Dozza, M.E., a

graduate student in bioengineering at the University of Bologna who

spent part of last year conducting human tests of the device in

Horak's speciallydesigned balance disorders lab. " In addition, the

sounds tell the subjects which way they are leaning so they can

immediately correct the problem before they fall. For example, when

subjects lean forward, they hear a high-pitched tone that becomes

higher and louder the farther they lean forward. If subjects lean

backward, they hear a low-pitched tone that drops and gets louder as

they lean back. In addition, the tone becomes louder in the left ear

when a subject leans too far to the left. The tone becomes louder in

the right ear when the subject leans too far to the right. "

To conduct this study, the researchers tested nine subject suffering

from balance problems associated with bilateral vestibular loss

caused by ototoxic medications, drugs that have a negative effect on

the balance structures in the inner ear. When using the device, these

subjects witnessed a marked decrease in sway area, meaning that they

were less likely to lean far out of their safe zone. They also spent

an increased amount of time within their safe area. Some subjects who

were not able to stand on a soft cushion with eyes closed without the

device were able to stand safely while using the balance feedback

device.

One subject who has taken part in testing for the device is Fred

Kawabata. The 65-year-old retired electronics engineer has balance

problems associated with a reoccurring viral infection that affected

his inner ear.

" It's as if my body isn't as fast as it used to be in providing

feedback about my balance, " explained Kawabata. " While maintaining

balance is an automatic function for others, for me, some tasks

require active thought about balance. During the testing, I found the

device to be very intuitive in helping me correct balance issues more

quickly. "

Horak says follow-up studies are now required to determine how long

the impact of balance training with the device lasts and how

frequently balance training may be required.

" We are now testing how much the device works to help balance while

walking, " said Horak. OHSU's Neurological Science Institute is

located on the university's West Campus in Beaverton. The NSI's

mission is to advance our understanding of the brain and neurological

disorders. NSI scientists use integrated and interdisciplinary

approaches to expand knowledge about how the brain and nervous system

function. Their goal is to translate new knowledge into innovative

ways to diagnose, treat, cure and prevent neurological diseases and

disorders.

http://www.ohsu.edu