Failure on the Foam Eyes Closed Test of Standing Balance Associated With Reduced Semicircular Canal Function in Healthy Older Adults.

The study was cross-sectional, so it cannot show that vestibular or proprioceptive changes caused balance failure. Sensory tests were performed while participants were sitting or lying down, separately from standing, so the results do not reflect sensory reweighting during balance. Only horizontal semicircular canal function was tested with VOR gain, so vertical canal contributions were not assessed. VEMP responses were treated as present or absent rather than as continuous amplitudes, although testing continuous amplitudes did not change the relationship with passing. Ankle proprioception was measured behaviourally, not by a physiologic test such as somatosensory evoked potentials. The video head impulse test was insensitive to mild to moderate caloric asymmetries. Participants who needed assistance to stand from sitting or to walk were excluded, so the results do not apply to people who cannot stand or walk independently. The analysis included only participants who completed all sensory and balance tests, not everyone who attempted balance testing.

No author conflict of interest statement is included in the supplied text. The publication metadata lists NIH extramural research support.

Do not use a failed foam eyes closed test as proof of vestibular loss. The study found only an association with lower horizontal semicircular canal VOR gain; ankle proprioception and otolith measures were not significant, and the design was cross-sectional.