Fear of heights: cognitive performance and postural control.
Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci
; 259(2): 114-9, 2009 Mar.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-18806914
INTRODUCTION: Fear of heights, or acrophobia, is one of the most frequent subtypes of specific phobia frequently associated to depression and other anxiety disorders. Previous evidence suggests a correlation between acrophobia and abnormalities in balance control, particularly involving the use of visual information to keep postural stability. This study investigates the hypotheses that (1) abnormalities in balance control are more frequent in individuals with acrophobia even when not exposed to heights, that (2) acrophobic symptoms are associated to abnormalities in visual perception of movement; and that (3) individuals with acrophobia are more sensitive to balance-cognition interactions. METHOD: Thirty-one individuals with specific phobia of heights and thirty one non-phobic controls were compared using dynamic posturography and a manual tracking task. RESULTS: Acrophobics had poorer performance in both tasks, especially when carried out simultaneously. Previously described interference between posture control and cognitive activity seems to play a major role in these individuals. DISCUSSION: The presence of physiologic abnormalities is compatible with the hypothesis of a non-associative acquisition of fear of heights, i.e., not associated to previous traumatic events or other learning experiences. Clinically, this preliminary study corroborates the hypothesis that vestibular physical therapy can be particularly useful in treating individuals with fear of heights.
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Transtornos Fóbicos
/
Postura
/
Percepção Espacial
/
Cognição
/
Equilíbrio Postural
/
Percepção de Movimento
Tipo de estudo:
Guideline
/
Qualitative_research
Limite:
Adult
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci
Assunto da revista:
NEUROLOGIA
/
PSIQUIATRIA
Ano de publicação:
2009
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Brasil
País de publicação:
Alemanha