Aging Delays Completion of Head Rotation Cycles in Continuous Gaze Stabilization Exercises despite Putative Healthy Vestibular Function

Abstract

Introduction: Aging is associated with loss of balance, with falls being one of the leading causes of death among the elderly in the USA. Gaze stabilization exercises (GSE) improve balance control in vestibular populations and could be useful to prevent falls in healthy individuals. However, the extent to which aging affects head kinematics in GSE is unknown. Methods: Forty-eight younger (n = 25, 24 ± 6 years, 60% female) and older (n = 23, 66 ± 5 years, 56% female) adults completed six 30-s GSE. Participants were asked to maintain gaze fixation on a stationary target while continuously performing head movements in pitch (e.g., vertical) and yaw (e.g., horizontal) directions. The visual target was placed on the wall 1 m or 2 m away or handheld at arm’s length. Head kinematics were recorded with an inertial measurement unit placed on the back of the participants’ head. Results: Older adults took significantly more time (e.g., delay) to complete cycles of head rotation in both pitch and yaw compared to younger participants across all GSE. Such delay was further increased during yaw head rotation while fixating gaze of the 1 m target. The average peak velocity (APV) and average angular displacement (AAD), however, were equivalent between groups in all GSE. Conclusion: Aging leads to the maintenance of head rotation APV and AAD at the expense of delayed cycles of head rotation, suggesting an age-dependent prioritization strategy (e.g., adapt duration first, range second) during continuous head movements. The distance of the visual target and head movement direction influenced elderly performance and should be considered when prescribing GSE to older populations.