Differentiated stabilometric assessment of postural control in nonathlete children and comparison with young athletes

BACKGROUND: Monitoring the functional parameters of the musculoskeletal system is crucial for evaluating children’s adaptive responses to physical activity. Such health monitoring of children participating in sports should be systematic. Stabilometry is a promising method for the functional assessment of the musculoskeletal system in young athletes. AIM: To develop criteria for the differentiated assessment of postural control in children based on analysis of asymmetry in stabilometric parameters of the contralateral lower limbs centers of pressure and compare these findings with those obtained in young athletes. METHODS: A two-stage study of postural balance in healthy children was conducted using dual stabilometric platforms. In stage 1, a control group including 59 children aged 5–16 years who were not involved in sports and whose physical activity did not exceed routine daily levels was investigated to determine the range of normal stabilometric parameters. The children were divided into four age subgroups: 16 children aged 5–6 years, 13 aged 7–10 years, and 15 each aged 11–13 years and 14–16 years. In stage 2, 15 boys and girls aged 7–10 years who regularly trained at sports schools in Saint Petersburg were examined. RESULTS: In the control group, postural balance gradually improved with age starting from 5 to 6 years and reached its highest levels by age 14–16 years. In the main group, regular sports training with increased physical loads in children aged 7–10 years did not adversely affect postural balance or the balance between contralateral lower limbs. This may be associated with a gentle exercise methodology that provides balanced and age-appropriate training loads adjusted for the physiological characteristics of children. The quality of postural control was better in young athletes than in their nonathlete peers, with median stabilometric parameters of 80% and 72%, respectively (p 0.05). Lower center of pressure velocities and smaller statokinesiogram areas were noted in athletes, showing more efficient postural balance. These findings indicate adaptive processes in the postural ontogenesis of children in the main group because of systematically graded physical loads on the musculoskeletal system. CONCLUSION: The functional asymmetry between the contralateral lower limbs should be considered, which is a physiological characteristic of growing children, particularly young athletes. This asymmetry is linked to age-related physiological differences in the centers of pressure movements of the left and right lower limbs associated with cerebral lateralization. Considering motor asymmetry of the contralateral lower limbs in training programs is advisable to prevent sports-related injuries.