How do vestibular disorders typically affect postural control and compensations?

• A. Impaired head movement tolerance, reduced VOR/gaze stabilization, increased sway with head motion, and greater reliance on vision/proprioception
• B. No effect on balance
• C. Improve head movement tolerance
• D. Exclusively hearing loss

Answer: (A)

Vestibular input provides critical information about head motion to keep gaze steady and to help regulate balance. When vestibular function is disrupted, the vestibulo-ocular reflex that normally stabilizes vision during head movements is reduced, so head movements produce unstable gaze and increased effort is needed to maintain fixation. This leads to more postural sway during movement and a sense of imbalance. To cope, the system shifts toward relying more on visual and proprioceptive cues to maintain stability. So you’d expect impaired tolerance to head movement, reduced gaze stabilization, greater sway with head motion, and a stronger dependence on vision and somatosensory input.