Elucidating links between vestibular function, cognition, and sensorimotor behavior

每年有近25-50%的老年人跌倒。然而，预防跌倒的努力并不一致， 影响跌倒风险的有效因素和因素尚未完全了解。前庭系统， 内耳的一部分，是一个已知的贡献者下降的风险和最近的证据表明，认知 可能与前庭功能相互作用而影响福尔斯。老年痴呆症（AD）患者 2-3比认知健康的成年人和前庭功能障碍的人多出一倍， 认知的变化。然而，这些关系尚未完全阐明。为 前庭系统是多样的，识别哪些功能通路（即，反射性的，知觉性的， 视觉-前庭整合）与认知有关，不平衡对发育至关重要 有针对性的干预措施，以减少福尔斯。具体目的是检查前庭神经系统 功能与AD中的感觉运动行为（平衡和福尔斯）相关（目标1a）， 前庭功能丧失的成年人的认知与感觉运动行为的相关程度 (Aim 1 b）。AD患者和前庭丧失患者之间的明确比较也将进行（目的 1c）为了确定潜在的相似性，并为正在进行的跌倒预防干预提供信息， 这些患者群体。现有的措施将与新的实验室技术相结合 为了直接告知临床实践并阐明跌倒的基本机制， 风险K 01奖励期将使PI能够在其现有临床和研究的基础上继续发展 前庭科学的专业知识，并提供以下领域的结构化培训：a）老化，B） 认知和认知障碍，c）用于评估平衡和步态的先进技术， 以及d）用于测量眼球运动的先进技术。研究和培训经验 在这个奖项期间，将帮助PI成为前庭的独立研究人员 physiology.拟议的工作将在俄亥俄州州立大学进行， 博士Dan Merfeld和Yuri Agrawal博士与来自 在各自领域的领导者。拟议的培训活动和研究计划是一致的 与NIDCD的研究战略计划平衡，特别是解决当前的 了解健康和疾病中的自我运动感知以及影响因素 不平衡和福尔斯。建议的培训将成为未来R 01的基础 应用先进的前庭评估技术，检查感觉的变化， 功能与不同的病理和姿势控制的关系。

Every year, nearly 25-50% of older adults fall. However, fall prevention efforts are not uniformly effective and factors contributing to fall risk are not completely understood. The vestibular system, part of the inner ear, is a known contributor to fall risk and recent evidence suggests that cognition may interact with vestibular function to influence falls. Patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) fall 2-3 times more than cognitively healthy adults and those with vestibular dysfunction exhibit changes in cognition. However, these relationships have not been fully elucidated. As the vestibular system is diverse, identifying which functional pathways (i.e., reflexive, perceptual, visual-vestibular integration) are related to both cognition and imbalance is vital for development of targeted interventions to reduce falls. The specific aims examine the extent to which vestibular function is associated with sensorimotor behaviors (balance and falls) in AD (Aim 1a) and the extent to which cognition is associated with sensorimotor behaviors in adults with vestibular loss (Aim 1b). Explicit comparisons between those with AD and vestibular loss will also be made (Aim 1c) in order to determine potential similarities and inform ongoing fall prevention interventions in these patient populations. Existing measures will be combined with novel laboratory techniques in order to directly inform clinical practice and elucidate fundamental mechanisms underlying fall risk. The K01 award period will enable the PI to build upon her existing clinical and research expertise in vestibular science and provide structured training in the following areas: a) aging, b) cognition and cognitive impairment, c) advanced techniques for assessment of balance and gait, and d) advanced techniques for measuring eye movements. Research and training experiences during this award period will help the PI become an independent researcher in vestibular physiology. The proposed work will take place at Ohio State University under the mentorship of Dr. Dan Merfeld and Dr. Yuri Agrawal in conjunction with subject area specific mentorship from leaders in their respective fields. The proposed training activities and research plan are consistent with the NIDCD’s strategic plan for research in balance, specifically addressing current understanding of self-motion perception in health and disease and factors contributing to imbalance and falls in older adults. The proposed training will be the foundation for future R01 applications using advanced vestibular assessment techniques to examine changes in sensory function related to diverse pathologies and relationships to postural control.