BU prof. studies balance

Boston University Biomedical Engineering professor James Collins recently completed a study on noise-enhanced balance control in patients with diabetes and stroke victims, which will be published in Monday’s issue of Annals of Neurology.

The study set out to prove whether mechanical noise applied to the soles of the feet can be used to improve balance in 15 patients with diabetic neuropathy and 15 patients who suffer from the effects of strokes. The mechanical noise was applied via vibrating insoles in the patients’ shoes.

“We used random vibrations through the soles,” Collins said. “We set them to a level that did not allow the patients to feel the vibrations, since earlier studies showed it was the way to derive the most benefit.”

Experimenting in his lab at BU, Collins worked with a team of nine other researchers.

“Testing began a few years ago,” he said. “We completed it a year ago, although there’s been interest in this issue for about 11 and a half years.”

According to the study, subjects were asked to keep their eyes closed and stand quietly on the insoles presented to them. They had a fixed position, with heels separated and their hands at their sides.

The amplitude of the noise applied to the soles of their feet was adjusted until the stimulation could just be felt by the subject, the study stated. Collins said a reflective marker was attached to the right shoulder of each subject to assess postural sway.

Collins said the end result showed that the sway among all subjects decreased with the application of noise.

Collins and his team received funding from the National Institute of Health and other private endowments.

Students say they feel this study is a positive step in rehabilitation. “I think that the therapeutic aspect of this technology is impressive,” Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences senior Jim Regan said. “The medical community will definitely benefit from it.”

College of Communication freshman Maddie Stein said she recently heard Collins discuss his research as a guest lecturer in her communication class.

“This is a positive study because it may eventually help reduce the probability of these individuals falling and hurting themselves,” she said.

Collins said there will be further study done to test the implication of using these same vibrating insoles to improve balance control in patients with other problems.

“We plan to focus our attention on such dynamic activity as walking,” Collins said.

Stein said if the technology can be adapted, it has the opportunity to change lives.

“It’s a great thing that Collins plans to take it a step further,” she said. “To apply it now to something like walking, something which is a part of everyday life, has the potential to make lives better.”