Postural Control, Sleep Quality, and Body Composition in Patients With Ménière's Disease: A Cross-sectional Study Using Dynamic Posturography.

Patients with Ménière's disease showed significantly poorer sleep quality than matched controls on both the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index and Insomnia Severity Index.

• PSQI scores: 9.8 (MD) vs. 4.5 (controls); mean difference 5.3; P <.001; r=0.60
• ISI scores: 11.1 (MD) vs. 4.5 (controls); mean difference 6.6; P <.001; r=0.54
• Study included 21 MD patients and 21 age- and sex-matched controls
• Effect sizes were large (r=0.60 and r=0.54 respectively)

Patients with Ménière's disease demonstrated significantly lower postural control on the Sensory Organization Test compared to controls.

• SOT composite scores: 57.0 (MD) vs. 82.5 (controls); P <.001; r=0.69
• Number of falls during testing: 3.5 (MD) vs. 0.1 (controls); P <.001; r=0.65
• Vestibular function scores: 30.4 (MD) vs. 66.1 (controls); P <.001; r=0.56
• Effect sizes were large across all SOT measures

Ménière's disease patients exhibited slower movement velocities and mediolateral instability on Limits of Stability and Rhythmic Weight Shift tests.

• LOS velocity: 2.1 (MD) vs. 3.5 (controls); P =.002; r=0.49
• RWS axis velocity: 4.8 (MD) vs. 5.8 (controls); P =.008; r=0.41
• Both tests revealed mediolateral instability in MD patients

Ménière's disease patients had significantly higher fat mass and fat percentage compared to controls, and these were associated with impaired balance.

• Fat mass: 22.0 kg (MD) vs. 17.3 kg (controls); P =.034; d=0.58
• Fat percentage: 30.5% (MD) vs. 24.7% (controls); P =.025; d=0.62
• Body composition was measured via bioimpedance analysis
• Effect sizes were moderate (Cohen's d=0.58 and d=0.62)

A regression model identified age, disease duration, tinnitus, insomnia, and LOS/RWS performance as significant predictors of postural control in Ménière's disease.

• The regression model had an adjusted R²=.816, explaining approximately 81.6% of variance in balance
• Significant predictors included age, disease duration, tinnitus, insomnia, and LOS/RWS scores
• Poor sleep and adiposity were independently linked to imbalance

The study used dynamic posturography via the Sensory Organization Test, Limits of Stability, and Rhythmic Weight Shift to assess postural control in a cross-sectional case-control design.

• Study was conducted January to July 2024 in university research laboratories specializing in rehabilitation
• 42 adults total: 21 with MD and 21 age- and sex-matched controls
• Exclusion criteria included multiple vestibular diagnoses, neurological or psychiatric disorders, and uncorrected visual impairment
• Sleep was assessed with Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and Insomnia Severity Index (ISI); body composition by bioimpedance measuring BMI, fat mass, fat percentage, and visceral fat