title: Vestibular activity and cognitive development in children: perspectives.
abstract: Vestibular signals play an essential role in oculomotor and static and dynamic posturomotor functions. Increasing attention is now focusing on their impact on spatial and non-spatial cognitive functions. Movements of the head in space evoke vestibular signals that make important contributions during the development of brain representations of body parts relative to one another as well as representations of body orientation and position within the environment. A central nervous system pathway relays signals from the vestibular nuclei to the hippocampal system where this input is indispensable for neuronal responses selective for the position and orientation of the head in space. One aspect of the hippocampal systems' processing to create episodic and contextual memories is its role in spatial orientation and navigation behaviors that require processing of relations between background cues. These are also impaired in adult patients with vestibular deficits. However little is known about the impact of vestibular loss on cognitive development in children. This is investigated here with a particular emphasis upon the hypothetical mechanisms and potential impact of vestibular loss at critical ages on the development of respective spatial and non-spatial cognitive processes and their brain substrates.
authors.affiliation: Vestibular and Oculomotor Evaluation Unit, Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Robert Debré Pediatric Hospital Paris, France.
authors.forename: Sylvette R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Wiener-Vacher
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of New Mexico Albuquerque, NM, USA.
authors.forename: Derek A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Hamilton
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Physiologie de la Perception et de l'Action, UMR-7152, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique - Collège de France Paris, France ; Memolife Laboratory of Excellence, Paris Science and Letters University Paris, France.
authors.forename: Sidney I
authors.initials: SI
authors.lastname: Wiener
keywords: cognitive; development; human; navigation; ontogeny; otolith; vestibular