Light touch and visual information effects on upright stance control in adults

Abstract

Somatosensory information, provided by light touch to a contact surface, reduces body oscillation. However, it is un known the effect of light touch in situations which visual information is manipulated by a moving room. Therefore, the purpose of this investigation was to verify the light touch effect on adults’ body oscillation in different visual conditions. Eight adults stood upright inside a moving room nearby a touch bar. IRED markers were placed on the participant’s head, between the scapulas and lumbar region. Six experimental conditions were combined: with and without vision, with and without light touch contact and with and without room oscillation. Each trial lasted 60 seconds with a sampling rate of 100 Hz. The variables analyzed were mean sway amplitude and gain. The results revealed that light touch contact reduced body oscillation in all visual conditions and decreased the visual stimulus influence provided by the room oscillation. Therefore, in situations that the visual stimulus is manipulated by a moving room, light touch contact reduces body oscillation indicating that, in this experimental situation, somatosensory information overcomes information provided by the visual system.