Preoperative postural control of patients with vestibular schwannoma assessed by visual feedback posturography.
BACKGROUND
The need for an objective method to describe the functional postural control of patients with vestibular schwannoma in agreement with their subjective sensation of balance.


OBJECTIVE
The objective was to compare the postural control of 49 patients with unilateral vestibular schwannoma (VS) with that of healthy subjects by using visual feedback posturography (VFP). We aimed to find out if preoperative postural control of the patients correlates with their subjective sensation of balance.


METHODS
In the VFP, while standing on the platform, patients were instructed to move their center of gravity (COG) marker to the targets as fast and accurately as possible. Hit delay (HD) to the targets, hold percentage (HP) within the targets, COG marker velocity (CMV) to the targets, and balance index (BI) were calculated. We rated intensity of balance disturbance using a 5-point qualitative scale.


RESULTS
Twenty-two (45%) patients had at least one abnormal VFP parameter, and 49% of patients were simultaneously symptomatic. Mean hit delay (HD), hold percentage (HP), and balance index (BI) were significantly worsened in patients with VS (p < 0.05). Increased HD and BI correlated significantly with subjective sensation of imbalance (p = 0.02).


CONCLUSIONS
The overall deficit in preoperative postural control of the VS patients was not severe, and this finding agreed well with their subjective sensations.
Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Helsinki University Central Hospital, Helsinki, Finland.
M
M
Hirvonen
H
H
Aalto
T P
TP
Hirvonen
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001676:Biofeedback, Psychology; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D004584:Electronystagmography; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009464:Neuroma, Acoustic / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000601:surgery; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D004856:Postural Balance; D011187:Posture; D011300:Preoperative Care; D014796:Visual Perception