Comparison of Static and Dynamic Balance Among Mentally Retarded Children and ‎Adolescents

Mental retardation is a condition in which the general performance of the mind is lower than average and is accompanied by limitations in two or more applicable skill and adaptation levels (1). Control of body posture and poor balance is one of the problems of mentally retarded people. It is possible. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate and compare static and dynamic balance and body posture in the mentally retarded.

The current research is semi-experimental. The statistical population of this research included all mentally retarded female students of Gilan province, among them 30 mentally retarded female students in two groups of children with an average age of 8.20±0.862 years and teenagers with an average age of 16±0.756 years and Body mass index with an average of 20.98±5.159 in the child group and an average of 24.636±4.479 in the adolescent group were selected as samples. Single limb standing (SLS) test was used to evaluate static balance and Y test was used to evaluate dynamic balance. To analyze the results, SPSS version 26 software and independent t-test and Yeoman-Whitney test were used at a significant level (p ≤0/05).

Based on the results of this research, there is a significant difference in dynamic balance in the children group (p=0.823) with the mean and standard deviation (7.06±9.67) and the adolescent group (8.39±4.65), the condition Body in conditions of vestibular and sensory disturbances (participation of the visual system) (p=0.174) with (2.94±10.0) in the children group, (3.62±9.40) in the adolescent group, the condition Body in the conditions of visual and sensory disturbance (participation of the vestibular system) children group (p=0.818), (4.64 ±7.91), adolescent group (2.80±7.64), between the two groups was not observed. In two states, body posture in the children group in the condition without disturbance (p=0.026) (3.24 ± 7.15), in the adolescent group (2.24 ± 5.82) and in the condition of vestibular and vision disturbance (participation Sensory system) in the children group (p=0.039), (3.02 ± 9.80), in the adolescent group (2.50 ± 11.28), a significant difference was observed between the two groups.

The results of the research showed that in the conditions where all three sensory systems, vestibular and visual, were involved in the body posture, a significant difference was observed between the two groups of children and teenagers, that in the children group, the number of errors was more and the body posture was poor. They have more No significant difference was observed between the two groups in the conditions where vestibular and vision system information was involved in the body posture, and only in the conditions of disturbance in the vestibular and vision system, i.e. when the sensory system was involved in the body posture, there was a difference between the two groups. It was observed that the number of errors in the group of children was less and children were in a better condition than the group of teenagers, which can indicate the strengthening of proprioception with age. In addition, there was no difference between the two groups in the variable of dynamic balance.