Effects of aging on whole body and segmental control while obstacle crossing under impaired sensory conditions

The ability to safely negotiate obstacles is an important component of independent mobility, requiring adaptive locomotor responses to maintain dynamic balance. This study examined the effects of aging and visual–vestibular interactions on whole-body and segmental control during obstacle crossing. Twelve young and 15 older adults walked along a straight pathway and stepped over one obstacle placed in their path. The task was completed under 4 conditions which included intact or blurred vision, and intact or perturbed vestibular information using galvanic vestibular stimulation (GVS). Global task performance significantly increased under suboptimal vision conditions. Vision also significantly influenced medial–lateral center of mass displacement, irrespective of age and GVS. Older adults demonstrated significantly greater trunk pitch and head roll angles under suboptimal vision conditions. Similar to whole-body control, no GVS effect was found for any measures of segmental control. The results indicate a significant reliance on visual but not vestibular information for locomotor control during obstacle crossing. The lack of differences in GVS effects suggests that vestibular information is not up-regulated for obstacle avoidance. This is not differentially affected by aging. In older adults, insufficient visual input appears to affect ability to minimize anterior–posterior trunk movement despite a slower obstacle crossing time and walking speed. Combined with larger medial–lateral deviation of the body COM with insufficient visual information, the older adults may be at a greater risk for imbalance or inability to recover from a possible trip when stepping over an obstacle.