Proximal auditory AR rehabilitation: system integration and wellness applications-from hearing support up toward vestibular rehabilitation.
Jinyoung Lee, Shigekazu Ishihara, Keiko Ishihara and 1 others
PMID 39113688WHAT IT FOUND
Healthy young adults standing on a balance board swayed sideways more when hearing sounds move between distant speakers through an open-ear headset.
This specific setup increased tilt in their standing posture compared to closed headphones or bone-conduction devices.
Key findings
01The open-ear headset combined with distant speakers caused a statistically significant sideways tilt in standing posture compared to speakers alone.
02Bone-conduction and closed-type headphones did not produce a significant change in the angle of body sway compared to the control condition.
03The study participants were healthy university students aged 19 to 22, not patients with balance or vestibular disorders.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study was conducted on healthy young adults, so the results may not apply to patients with vestibular disorders, dizziness, or balance impairments. The intervention is a prototype system in the development stage, not a commercially available or clinically validated treatment. The sample size was small (29 participants), and one participant was excluded as a statistical outlier. The study measured immediate body sway responses, not long-term functional improvement or rehabilitation outcomes.
Declared interests
The authors declare no financial support was received for the research, authorship, or publication of this article.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the increased body sway as evidence that this device treats balance disorders. The study was performed on healthy young adults to test if the hardware can mechanically induce sway, not to test if it improves balance in patients.