Name: JEAN LEITE DA CRUZ
Publication date: 25/11/2022
Advisor:
Name |
Role |
|---|---|
| NATALIA MADALENA RINALDI | Advisor * |
Examining board:
| Name |
Role |
|---|---|
| MARCELA LIMA SANT`ANNA | External Examiner * |
| NATALIA MADALENA RINALDI | Advisor * |
Summary: The literature shows that episodes of falls in the elderly population are related to changes in postural control and muscle function due to deterioration of sensory systems, related to a misperception of the body in space and the motor system. The MiniBESTest is a test that assesses postural balance and is composed of 14 items with tasks that include anticipatory postural adjustments, postural responses, sensory orientation and gait stability. The MiniBESTest is able to assess static and dynamic balance and also has tests that disturb the somatosensory and visual systems, allowing the assessment of balance behavior at different levels of task difficulty. Therefore, it is not yet fully elucidated what is the influence of the performance of muscle function and postural control on the MiniBESTest sub-items in the elderly. Thus, the objective of this study was to investigate the influence of postural control performance in terms of different levels of difficulty of the postural task and muscle function in the MiniBESTest items. A total of 61 elderly people participated in this study (65.9 ± 4.4 years; 1.6 ± 0.05 m; 67.3 ± 10 kg). An isokinetic dynamometer was used to assess the following movements: hip and knee flexion and extension and ankle dorsiflexion and plantar flexion. The evaluation consisted of concentric isokinetic tests with a predetermined speed of 120°/s (10 trials) for the average power of the lower limbs. Postural control was assessed using a force platform, in semitandem base conditions on a rigid surface with eyes open and closed; semitandem base on unstable surface with eyes open and closed. The MiniBESTest was applied to assess the clinical balance of the elderly. The linear regression analysis showed the influence of the variables of anteroposterior, medial lateral displacement and total velocity of the COP in the MiniBESTest tests. In addition, the average power of the hip, knee and ankle joints also showed an influence on the MiniBESTest sub-items. The influence between the variables of the COP and the MiniBESTest indicates that the higher the score in the tests of this tool, the lower the oscillation values ​​of the elderly. Furthermore, the influence of muscle function and the MiniBESTest indicates that the higher the score of this tool, the greater the production of muscle power in the elderly. These findings are important, as the MiniBESTest can be widely used by health professionals on a daily basis in the clinical area, and the performance presented by the elderly will serve as an important basis for a more comprehensive assessment of balance control. Finally, with these data it will be possible to establish a better diagnosis and will be able to point out in a more direct way the necessary motor interventions for these elderly people, in order to improve the development of muscle functions and postural control.
Keywords: Postural control; balance; potency; MiniBESTest
