Postural stability in patients with Parkinson’s disease versus patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus

Background: Postural control is defined as the control of body’s position in space for balance purpose. Postural control in static conditions is known as postural steadiness, whereas in the dynamic volitional perturbations, it is noted as postural stability. Postural stability can be affected owing to central or peripheral lesions; one of the central lesions with postural instability is Parkinson’s disease (PD). However, peripheral neuropathies that affect stability are one of the most common complications of diabetes mellitus. Aim: The aim was to assess postural stability in patients with PD and those with type 2 diabetes as examples of central and peripheral lesions, respectively, and to compare the results with the findings obtained from the normal control group. Patients and Methods: The patient group in the study was divided into two subgroups: subgroup 1 consisted of 15 patients diagnosed as having PD and subgroup 2 included 15 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Control group consisted of 15 normal age-matched participants. Postural assessment was performed using computerized dynamic posturography. This included the automatic motor assessments tests, including motor control test and adaptation test, and functional limitation tests such as tandem walk. Results: This research showed that there is a statistically significant difference between control group and subgroup with PD in all tested parameters. A statistically significant difference was found between control group and subgroup with diabetes in all parameters of adaptation test and speed test. Moreover, there is a statistically significant difference between the two subgroups in most of tested parameters, with the highest value in PD group. Conclusion: The findings reflect that postural stability is more affected with central lesion than peripheral lesion. © 2018 The Egyptian Journal of Otolaryngology.