Movement & Balance Flashcards
When does movement occur?
- unequal/unbalanced forces
- inertia is overcome
How does movement occur?
- muscles produce force by creating tension applied to bones which move at joints
OR - as a result of an external force like gravity or another person (to assist or resist a movement)
What is motor control?
the ability to regulate or direct mechanisms essential to movement.
What 3 factors impact motor control?
Individual
Task
Environment
What are examples of how task impacts movement?
- stability
- complexity of task
- attention or cognition required
What are examples of how individual impacts movement?
- joint range
- muscle strength
- coordination
- perception
- sensation
- cognition
- previous experience
What are examples of how environment impacts movement?
- surface type
- noise and distraction
- temperature
- lighting
- size, shape, height, weight of objects involved
Dynamic systems model
accounts for the interaction between individual, task and environment
What 2 things are vital to movement?
- sensory/afferent systems - info into the brain
- muscular/efferent response - info away from the brain (usually to the muscles)
What 4 sensory systems are involved in motor control?
- vision
- proprioception
- sensation
- vestibular (inner ear)
What are motor control and postural control vital for?
- balance
- coordination
What 3 systems are motor control and postural control essential for at an individual level?
- Active (muscles)
- Passive (joints)
- Neural (nerves/brain)
What is postural control?
the element of motor control that controls our balance and posture
To move effectively, what do we need to be able to do?
- recover from instability
- anticipate and move in ways to prevent instability
Postural control includes the mechanisms the body uses to be what?
- stable
- orientated (relationship between body parts and relationship between body, task and environment)
What is proprioception?
the conscious and unconscious awareness of body position in 3D space
Centre of Mass (CoM)
the point which is the centre of all particles that make us (our mass)
Centre of Gravity (CoG)
the hypothetical point at which all the weight of the body or object is concentrated, where all linear & angular forces are balanced & gravity passes through
Line of Gravity
vertical line downwards from centre of gravity (CoG) to ground
Base of Support (BoS)
the area beneath the body that is encompasses when one continuous line connects all points that are in contact of the ground
What are the 3 requirements for balance?
- available active and passive range (ROM)
- sensory info (vision, vestibular, somatosensation, proprioception)
- neuro-muscular integrity
Anticipatory postural adjustments
- predictive control of balance
- predictive contraction of muscles to resist whole body movement
Postural adjustments
- ankle strategy
- hip strategy
- stepping mechanism
Coordination
the harmonious working together, especially of several muscles or muscle groups in the execution of complicated movement
- controlled by cerebellum
What does the cerebellum do?
- integrates sensory info and info about the body position, movement and ongoing activity
- shares info with other sensorimotor systems to produce smooth coordinated movement
What are some standardised assessments of balance?
- single leg stand (eyes open/closed)
- star excursion
- Y-balance
- reaching distance
- Berg balance scale
- Tinetti
- ABC scale
- Timed Up and Go
What are some standardised assessment on coordination?
- finger-nose
- heel-shin
- SARA
- subjective assessment of dexterity
How to assess proprioception.
(done functionally)
1. Patient closes eyes
2. Passively move the patient’s limb in a specific position
3. Let go and ask to reproduce same position either ipsilaterally (same side) or contralaterally (opposite side)
4. Assess their accuracy
