Fear of heights shapes postural responses to vibration-induced balance perturbation at virtual height

Frontiers in Human Neuroscience

Human Neuroscience

Zuzana Hirjaková¹  Jana Kimijanová¹  Diana Bzdúšková¹  Martin Marko²  Igor Riečanský³ 

[1] Department of Behavioural Neuroscience, Centre of Experimental Medicine, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia;Department of Behavioural Neuroscience, Centre of Experimental Medicine, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia;Department of Applied Informatics, Faculty of Mathematics, Physics and Informatics, Comenius University in Bratislava, Bratislava, Slovakia;Department of Behavioural Neuroscience, Centre of Experimental Medicine, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia;Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Slovak Medical University in Bratislava, Bratislava, Slovakia;

关键词: virtual reality;    fear of heights;    transient period;    muscle vibration;    balance control;    body sway;    visual height intolerance;    sensory reweighting;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fnhum.2023.1229484

 received in 2023-05-26, accepted in 2023-08-21,  发布年份 2023

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

IntroductionStanding upright at height is a challenging situation involving intense threat of balance loss and fall. The ability to maintain balance in such conditions requires properly resolving sensory conflicts and is influenced by fear. To get more insight on the role of fear in balance control at height, we explored the dynamics of postural behavior in the situation of enhanced threat of potential balance loss.MethodsIn 40 young individuals with varying fear of heights, we combined simulated exposure to height in a virtual reality environment with bilateral vibration of tibialis anterior muscles which evokes posture destabilization (the so-called vibration-induced falling).ResultsUnder such condition of enhanced postural threat, individuals with intense fear of heights showed stronger stiffening of posture compared with individuals with low fear of heights who react more flexibly and adaptively to posture destabilization. This group difference was evident already at ground level but further increased during virtual height exposure.DiscussionOur data show that fear of height significantly affects posture adaptation to balance-destabilizing events. Our findings demonstrate that the assessment of postural behavior during threatening situations in the virtual reality environment provides valuable insights into the mechanisms of balance control and may be used to develop novel strategies aimed at prevention of falls.

【 授权许可】

Unknown   
Copyright © 2023 Bzdúšková, Marko, Hirjaková, Riečanský and Kimijanová.