Age-related changes in vestibular function: a longitudinal study.

The objective of this study was to identify age-related changes in the vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR) in normal older subjects and patients complaining of disequilibrium followed serially over time. Cross-sectional studies have found decreases in vestibular function in older subjects compared to younger subjects, but no prior longitudinal studies have been made following the same older subjects over time. We measured VOR responses using step and sinusoidal stimuli in 110 normal subjects and 51 patients with disequilibrium of unknown cause.

Aging effects on auditory and vestibular responses: a longitudinal study.

Purpose: To identify age-related changes in the auditory and vestibular systems in normal older subjects followed serially over time.

Methods: Pure tone hearing levels, speech reception threshold, speech discrimination scores, and vestibulo-ocular responses were measured in 57 normal older subjects (mean age, 82) on 5 yearly examinations.

Results: There was a significant (P < .

Disequilibrium in older people: a prospective study.

Objective: To identify the clinical and neuroimaging features in older people with disequilibrium of unknown cause.

Background: Many older people show a deterioration of balance without an identifiable cause. Whether the disequilibrium is a normal aging phenomenon, the result of yet unidentified neuropathology, or a combination of the two is unknown.

Balance disorders in older persons: quantification with posturography.

We measured sway velocity using static and dynamic posturography in a group of young normal subjects and two groups of subjects older than 75 years; one older group considered their balance normal for their age, and the other reported imbalance. The latter group consisted of patients with documented peripheral and central vestibular disorders and patients with dizziness and imbalance of unknown cause. The velocity of sway was higher in older subjects than in younger subjects and in older subjects who reported imbalance than in age-matched controls.

A prospective study of posturography in normal older people.

Objective: To follow posturographic measurements over time in a group of normal older subjects to see if sway increases with aging and if sway is greater in those with deteriorating balance and falls.

Subjects: Seventy-two community-dwelling older people (age range 79-91 years), who initially had normal neurological evaluations, were followed with three yearly follow-up examinations.

Measurements: Amplitude and velocity of sway on static and dynamic posturography, Tinetti gait and balance score, reports of falls.