Postura de crianças com deficiência auditiva

Abstract

The vestibular system has a dual function: auditory due to the presence of the cochlea and regulation of posture and balance. Hearing impaired children can develop different postural control strategies to compensate for balance and stability difficulties, thus acquiring typical static postures that offer better body stability. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the postural deviations of children with hearing loss. We evaluated 159 children of both gender, between 6 to 11 years old, such as 78 children with hearing impairment (HI) and 81 hearing children (listeners) using the postural assessment software (SAPO). The following body segments were evaluated in both frontal and sagittal planes: ankle, knee, pelvis, trunk, shoulder, scapula, and head. The data were submitted to descriptive analyzes (mean, standard deviation and percentage) and inferential analysis with Student's t test and chi-square to compare the quantitative and qualitative postural variables, respectively. The paired t-test was used to compare the right and left sides. The level of statistical significance was set at 5%. In this study, the postural changes found in children with hearing impairment were: inclination of the head to the left (p = 0.000), elevation of the right scapula (p = 0.021), extension of the trunk (p = 0.019), anterior projection of the body (p = 0.000), knock knees (p = 0.054) and semi-flexed knees (p = 0.000) and ankle flexion (p = 0.005). It was concluded, therefore, that children with hearing impairment presented specific postural changes that may be related to the search for a better balance