ClinicalTrials.gg
CompletedNCT03446677Updated Feb 27, 2018

Postural Stability Deficiencies in Asymptomatic Individuals With HIV

An interventional study of Postural Stability Testing in HIV, Balance and Vestibular Disorder, sponsored by Texas Woman's University. Completed. Open to participants aged 25 Years to 57 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2018-02-27.

Sponsored by Texas Woman's University · Not applicable, Interventional, and Screening

From the registry’s dates

  • Registered 3 years 6 months after the study started (first participant enrolled Jul 2014, registered Feb 2018).
Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
20
Allocation
Not applicable
Ages
25 Years to 57 Years
Sex
All
01

Study summary

Persons with HIV can present vestibular system impairments, affecting postural stability. There is scarce literature related to the contribution of the visual and somatosensory systems in maintaining postural stability in persons with HIV. The purpose of this study is to describe the sensory systems used to maintain postural stability and how the sources of sensory information contributes to postural stability in asymptomatic persons with HIV. Postural stability was measured in 20 asymptomatic persons with HIV (11 male, 9 female, aged 43 ± 8 years). Static postural stability was evaluated during eight conditions that perturbed the visual, somatosensory and vestibular inputs. A paired-samples t-test was conducted to compare center of pressure (COP), antero-posterior displacement (APD) and right-left displacement (RLD) on stable and unstable surface and to characterize each balance sensory system. There was a significant difference in the COP and APD of eyes open condition compared to the remaining conditions on stable surface. Furthermore, there was a significant difference in the COP, APD and RLD for the eyes open on a foam surface compared to the remaining conditions on an unstable surface. Postural instability can be detected in asymptomatic persons with HIV under challenging conditions, previous to the evident appearance of balance impairments.

Read the detailed description

The institutional review boards (IRB) of the University of Puerto Rico Medical Science Campus, reviewed and approved this study before any data collection was initiated. An informed consent was provided to each subject to access their medical records, HIV status, CD4+ cell count and as a requirement to participate in the study.

The subjects were recruited from La Perla de Gran Precio (Community wellness center that specializes in individuals with HIV) localized in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Each subject was evaluated by interview and review of their medical record for the inclusion and exclusion criteria assessment. Different tests were performed as a screening tool to identify additional limitations or impairments in the different sensory systems. To rule out severe neuropathy, the subject had to be able to detect a Semmes- Weinstein Monofilament of 5.07 or less in more than two areas of the foot.12,13 The visual system was screened using Snellen chart and the subject had to obtain at least 20/40 of visual acuity. To rule out severe balance impairments, the Romberg Test and Fukuda's Stepping Test were used. For Romberg Test, subjects had to maintain standing position for 30 seconds and Fukuda's Stepping Test required that the subject did not rotate more than 30° from the initial position or deviate more than 0.5 meters from the center of the circle. Functional strength of lower extremities was screened using a Five Times Sit to Stand test, where the subject had to complete the test in 10 seconds or less. Severe proprioception impairments were assessed using a Proprioceptive Awareness test, where the subject was asked to replicate the initial position performed by the evaluator in the contralateral ankle joint in three trials. After the screening of the inclusion and exclusion criteria, a total of 20 subjects were able to participate in the study.

Each subject was instructed to stand in a static bipedal posture on the MatScan® pressure mat and performed eight balance tasks. Data of center of pressure, antero-posterior sways and medial-lateral sways were collected in each of the conditions. Each task took 30 seconds to be performed. The first four tasks were performed with the mat on the hard surface of the floor. These four tasks are as follows:1) eyes open looking at a fixed point to evaluate all systems (EO); 2) eyes closed (with head fixed approximately 90˚) to eliminate visual input (EC); 3) eyes open looking at a fixed point and actively moving head upward and downward to alter vestibular inputs (EO+HUD). The subject was instructed to maintain a movement frequency of 60bpm and amplitude of approximately 45 degrees in each direction: neck flexion and extension; 4) eyes closed (with head fixed approximately 90˚) to eliminate visual input and the head actively moves upward and downward to alter vestibular inputs (EC+HUD). The subject is instructed to maintain the movement frequency and amplitude as described in task 3.

The subjects were asked to perform four more tasks while standing on a thick piece of balance foam that was placed on top of the MatScan®, creating an unstable surface. The remaining four tasks (tasks 5-8) are as follows: 5) eyes open looking at a fixed point while standing on the balance foam to alter somatosensory inputs (EO+BF); 6) eyes closed with head fixed approximately 90˚ while standing on the balance foam to alter somatosensory inputs and eliminate visual inputs (EC+BF); 7) eyes open looking at a fixed point and actively moving the head upward and downward while standing on the balance foam to alter somatosensory and vestibular inputs (EO+HUD+BF). The subject was instructed to maintain the movement frequency and amplitude as described in task 3; 8) eyes closed with head fixed approximately 90˚ and actively move head upward and downward while standing on the balance foam to eliminate visual inputs and alter somatosensory and vestibular inputs (EC+HUD+BF). The subject is instructed to maintain the movement frequency and amplitude as described in task 3.

Data of postural stability was obtained using the MatScan® pressure mat (TekScan, Boston, MA). The data collected from the pressure mat was analyzed with Tekscan Sway Analysis Module™ (SAM) software (TekScan, Boston, MA) designed for this purpose. Mean and standard deviation were used to describe data. The statistical software used was SPSS-20 to perform a Paired-Samples t-test and compare the center of pressure, antero-posterior and right-left body sways displacement. P values \<0.05 were accepted as statistically significant.

02

Conditions studied

  • HIV
  • Balance
  • Vestibular Disorder
  • Somatosensory Disorders
  • Postural Stability

Keywords

  • HIV
  • Balance
  • Vestibular
  • Somatosensory
  • postural stability
  • center of pressure
03

In context

Vestibular Diseases

170 studies on the registry are indexed under Vestibular Diseases; 41 are open to participants now.

This study's enrollment of 20 is below the median of 46 across 127 interventional studies indexed under Vestibular Diseases.

Browse Vestibular Diseases studies →

Lead sponsor

Texas Woman's University is the lead sponsor of 84 studies on the registry; 6 are open to participants now.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
25 Years to 57 Years
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.

Inclusion criteria

  1. CD4 levels above 300,
  2. age within the range of 25-57 years
  3. walks without assistive device
  4. tolerates standing position for at least 30 minutes
  5. stable cardiorespiratory system.

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. diagnosis of AIDS (CD4 levels less than 200)
  2. diagnosis of Diabetes, Dementia or Arthritis
  3. severe neuropathy
  4. severe balance impairments
  5. severe visual acuity problems that are not treated
  6. > 40,
  7. decreased functional strength in the lower extremities
  8. severe proprioception impairments
  9. falls during the last 6 months
  10. back or lower extremities lesion or surgery during the last 6 months
  11. the use of medications that causes drowsiness 24 hours previous to intervention
  12. women that are pregnant or think they might be pregnant
Terms in these criteria, in plain language(1)

Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.

BMI (body mass index)

Weight in kilograms divided by height in metres squared. Example: 70 kg and 1.75 m gives 70 ÷ (1.75 × 1.75) ≈ 22.9.

What counts as overweight or obesity differs between countries (some use lower cut-offs), so go by the range the study states.

05

Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Screening
Allocation
Not applicable
Intervention model
Single group
Masking
None (open label)
Enrollment
20 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    Asymptomatic persons with HIV

    Other: Postural Stability Testing

Interventions

  • OtherPostural Stability Testing

    Each subject was instructed to stand in a static bipedal posture on the MatScan® pressure mat and performed 8 balance tasks. Data of center of pressure, antero-posterior sways and medial-lateral sways were collected in each of the conditions. Each task took 30 seconds to be performed. The first 4 tasks were performed with the mat on the hard surface of the floor. These 4 tasks are as follows: standing with eyes open, standing with eyes closed, standing with eyes open looking and actively moving head upward and downward, and standing with eyes closed and the head actively moving upward and downward. The subjects were asked to perform four more tasks while standing on a thick piece of balance foam that was placed on top of the MatScan®. The remaining 4 tasks are as follows: standing with eyes open, standing with eyes closed, standing with eyes open looking and actively moving the head upward and downward, and standing with eyes closed with head actively moving upward and downward.

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Postural Stability

    Postural stability was operationally defined by the center of pressure displacement measured by the MatScan® pressure mat. These sensors detect the displacement as the body sways anterior, posterior or laterally (right or left).

    Time frame: Baseline

07

Study locations

No study locations are listed for this record.

08

References and documents

Publications

  • Sullivan EV, Rosenbloom MJ, Rohlfing T, Kemper CA, Deresinski S, Pfefferbaum A. Pontocerebellar contribution to postural instability and psychomotor slowing in HIV infection without dementia. Brain Imaging Behav. 2011 Mar;5(1):12-24. doi: 10.1007/s11682-010-9107-y. PubMed 20872291 ↗
  • Heinze BM, Vinck BM, Hofmeyr LM, Swanepoel de W. Vestibular involvement in adults with HIV/AIDS. Auris Nasus Larynx. 2014 Apr;41(2):160-8. doi: 10.1016/j.anl.2013.08.003. Epub 2013 Oct 19. PubMed 24145102 ↗
  • Cohen HS, Cox C, Springer G, Hoffman HJ, Young MA, Margolick JB, Plankey MW. Prevalence of abnormalities in vestibular function and balance among HIV-seropositive and HIV-seronegative women and men. PLoS One. 2012;7(5):e38419. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0038419. Epub 2012 May 31. PubMed 22675462 ↗
  • Heinze B, Swanepoel DW, Hofmeyr LM. Systematic review of vestibular disorders related to human immunodeficiency virus and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. J Laryngol Otol. 2011 Sep;125(9):881-90. doi: 10.1017/S0022215111001423. Epub 2011 Jul 5. PubMed 21729430 ↗
  • Shumway-Cook A, Woollacott M. (2012). Normal Postural Control. In: Motor Control Translating Research into Clinical Practice. 4th ed. Baltimore, MD: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins;:
  • Ruhe A, Fejer R, Walker B. The test-retest reliability of centre of pressure measures in bipedal static task conditions--a systematic review of the literature. Gait Posture. 2010 Oct;32(4):436-45. doi: 10.1016/j.gaitpost.2010.09.012. Epub 2010 Oct 13. PubMed 20947353 ↗
  • Dellepiane M, Medicina MC, Mora R, Salami A. Static and dynamic posturography in patients with asymptomatic HIV-1 infection and AIDS. Acta Otorhinolaryngol Ital. 2005 Dec;25(6):353-8. PubMed 16749603 ↗
  • Teggi R, Giordano L, Pistorio V, Bussi M. Vestibular function in HIV patients: preliminary report. Acta Otorhinolaryngol Ital. 2006 Jun;26(3):140-6. PubMed 17063983 ↗
  • Rosario M, Ortiz A. Balance assessment in people with HIV. Paper presented at: 60th Annual Meeting of American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM)
  • Adamo DE, Pociask FD, Goldberg A. The contribution of head position, standing surface and vision to postural control in young adults. J Vestib Res. 2013;23(1):33-40. doi: 10.3233/VES-130473. PubMed 23549053 ↗
  • Duffy JC, Patout CA Jr. Management of the insensitive foot in diabetes: lessons learned from Hansen's disease. Mil Med. 1990 Dec;155(12):575-9. PubMed 2125335 ↗
  • Bell-Krotoski J, Weinstein S, Weinstein C. Testing sensibility, including touch-pressure, two-point discrimination, point localization, and vibration. J Hand Ther. 1993 Apr-Jun;6(2):114-23. doi: 10.1016/s0894-1130(12)80292-4. PubMed 8393725 ↗
  • FUKUDA T. The stepping test: two phases of the labyrinthine reflex. Acta Otolaryngol. 1959 Mar-Apr;50(2):95-108. doi: 10.3109/00016485909129172. No abstract available. PubMed 13636842 ↗
  • Whitney SL, Wrisley DM, Marchetti GF, Gee MA, Redfern MS, Furman JM. Clinical measurement of sit-to-stand performance in people with balance disorders: validity of data for the Five-Times-Sit-to-Stand Test. Phys Ther. 2005 Oct;85(10):1034-45. PubMed 16180952 ↗
  • Chui K, Schmitz T. (2007). Examination of sensory function. In: O'Sullivan S, Schmitz T. Physical Rehabilitation.
  • Heinze BM, Vinck BM, Swanepoel DW. Does the human immunodeficiency virus influence the vestibulocollic reflex pathways? A comparative study. J Laryngol Otol. 2014 Sep;128(9):772-9. doi: 10.1017/S0022215114001996. Epub 2014 Aug 28. PubMed 25166876 ↗
  • O'Sullivan SB. (2007). Examination of Motor Function: Motor Control and Motor Learning. In: O'Sullivan SB. Physical Rehabilitation. 5th ed. Philadelphia
  • Creath R, Kiemel T, Horak F, Peterka R, Jeka J. A unified view of quiet and perturbed stance: simultaneous co-existing excitable modes. Neurosci Lett. 2005 Mar 29;377(2):75-80. doi: 10.1016/j.neulet.2004.11.071. Epub 2004 Dec 19. PubMed 15740840 ↗
  • Trenkwalder C, Straube A, Paulus W, Krafczyk S, Schielke E, Einhaupl KM. Postural imbalance: an early sign in HIV-1 infected patients. Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 1992;241(5):267-72. doi: 10.1007/BF02195975. PubMed 1606190 ↗
  • Sarlegna FR, Malfait N, Bringoux L, Bourdin C, Vercher JL. Force-field adaptation without proprioception: can vision be used to model limb dynamics? Neuropsychologia. 2010 Jan;48(1):60-7. doi: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2009.08.011. PubMed 19695273 ↗
  • Cameron M, Monroe L. (2007). Balance and fall risk. In: Tyner T, Allen D. Physical Rehabilitation Evidence-Based Examination, Evaluation, and Intervention. San Louis, Missouri: Saunders. 300-332
09

Timeline

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
ElapsedEstimatedEstimated, not yet reachedSimilar studies: half by the dot; the band is the middle halfHalf of similar studies reached it by the dot; the band is the middle half, from a quarter to three quarters

Ran from Jul 2014 to primary completion in May 2015, 10 months.

Of 79 non-industry interventional studies with no phase under Vestibular Diseases, half reached primary completion within 16 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 8 and three quarters within 37. This study's 10 months is below that.

Counting every sponsor, half of 84 studies reached it within 15 months; a quarter within 8 and three quarters within 34.

How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.

Registered
Feb 11, 2018
First posted
Feb 27, 2018
StartActual
Jul 22, 2014
Primary completionActual
May 22, 2015
CompletionActual
Jul 22, 2015
Last update
Feb 27, 2018
What these dates mean
Start.
When the first participant enrolled; while estimated, when the study expects to open to recruitment.
Primary completion.
When the last participant was examined or treated to collect data for the study's main question, its primary outcome. A study that stopped early gives the date its data collection stopped.
Completion.
When the last participant's last visit took place, for every outcome, secondary ones and side effects included: the end of the study. Often later than primary completion, sometimes the same day.
Actual and Est.
Actual means the registry says the date has happened. Est. (estimated) is a date the sponsor plans or expects. It can still move, and the sponsor is expected to change it to actual once it has passed.
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Feb 27, 2018, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
10

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT03446677
Lead sponsor
Texas Woman's University
Responsible party
Martin Rosario (Assistant Professor, Texas Woman's University) — Principal investigator
First posted
Feb 27, 2018
Start date
Jul 22, 2014
Primary completion
May 22, 2015
Completion
Jul 22, 2015
Last update
Feb 27, 2018

Study contacts

Martin G Rosario, Ph.D
principal investigator · Texas Woman's University

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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