Inner Ear and Balance Issues

An estimated two million American adults suffer chronic impairment from dizziness or difficulty with balance. As many as 80 million have experienced clinically significant dizziness problems at some point in their lives. Nearly one quarter of emergency room visits include a complaint of dizziness.

Besides helping astronauts adapt to life in microgravity, the Sensorimotor Adaptation Team's research also will help physicians diagnose and treat patients suffering from neurovestibular diseases here on Earth. The neurovestibular system is comprised of the inner ear balance organs and the associated brain centers. It allows us to stand and walk about actively in the environment while maintaining the sense of place and direction, the stability of the visual world, and our conscious awareness of where we are and which way we are facing. Most people take this for granted, unless these functions are compromised by inner ear or central nervous system disease.

Patients with inner ear disorders often have difficulty walking at night or in crowded places and seeing clearly, particularly when walking. They sometimes suffer injurious falls and incapacitating bouts of vertigo and nausea, and many patients cannot safely drive a car. Balance-related falls account for more than one half of accidental deaths in the elderly.

Sensorimotor Adaptation Research Team

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