Coordinating postural sway: Do children with and without a neurodevelopmental disorder differ?

Children with a neurodevelopmental disorder, such as autism, ADHD and dyslexia, often experience learning problems. However, many of them also experience problems with postural control. One potential explanation is that this is the result of a deficit in the cerebellum, which may result in a timing deficit. In the present study, we examined one such timing mechanism, namely the synchronization or coordination of postural sway. In a cooperative task, postural sway of both normally developing dyads and those consisting of children with a neurodevelopmental disorder was obtained. While performing the task, the children stood on a Nintendo Wii Balance Board that recorded their postural sway. The level of synchronization or coordination of postural sway in the dyads was analyzed using Cross Recurrence Quantification Analysis and subsequently subject to a Multilevel Regression Analysis. Our results showed, as expected, that normally developing children outperformed children with a neurodevelopmental disorder in the cooperative task. However, both groups showed similar coordination of postural sway. Thus, although the outcome is different, the underlying process appears to be similar for both groups.