Browsing by Author "Nevin, Michaela"
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- ItemNormative centre of pressure values for single leg standing and tandem stance in children between the ages of six and ten years : a pilot study(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2016-03) Nevin, Michaela; Unger, Marianne; Brink, Yolandi; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences. Dept. of Interdisciplinary Health Sciences. Physiotherapy.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Introduction Balance in children, both static and dynamic, is a skill required for normal motor development. Postural stability, measured by force plate derived centre of pressure (COP) data is used to infer static balance. A baseline normative reference database for age and gender will allow for more accurate assessment of children’s static balance development and ability. Objective To describe age and gender differences in postural stability for single leg standing and tandem stance in typically developed children aged six to ten years, and to provide recommendations for future, larger normative database studies. Methodology Using a descriptive study design, a convenience sample of 28 children each performed five balance tasks while standing on a dynamic pressure mapping device: left and right single leg standing with eyes open and eyes closed, and tandem stance. Centre of pressure range of movement and COP velocity parameters were used to describe postural stability. Mann-Whitney tests were used to determine significant differences in COP parameters between different age groups and gender. Level of significance was set at p ≤ 0.05. Results For single leg standing with eyes open, significant differences were found between boys and girls for mean COP velocity in the anterior-posterior (AP) direction (p=< 0.02) and mean COP velocity combined. Significant differences in mean COP velocity AP were also demonstrated between younger (6-8 yrs) and older (9-10) girls (p=< 0.03) No significant differences were found in single leg standing with eyes closed, and tandem stance. Conclusion The significant differences in COP velocity AP during single leg standing with eyes open between the older and younger girls illustrates age related Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za iii improvement in postural stability via slowing of COP velocity with age. This maturation of postural stability was not demonstrated for boys possibly because the boys, as a group, performed better than the girls. The lack of any significant differences between age groups and gender during tandem stance may be attributed to a ceiling effect as the task was not challenging enough. The increased difficulty of performing single leg standing with eyes closed was illustrated by lesser successful trials, larger COP range of movement and faster COP mean velocity across the age groups and genders.