Dialogue on Aging: Dr. Mark Carpenter

Talk title: A Balancing Act: Age-related changes in sensorimotor function and balance control

Summary: 

Falls pose a significant health risk to older adults; falls are the leading cause of accidental death and the number one cause of hospitalization due to unintentional injury in older adults. Maintenance of balance under static (quiet standing) and dynamic (reactive) balance conditions relies heavily upon the integration of multiple sources of sensory information (visual, vestibular and proprioceptive), to trigger and modulate balance responses that are task and context dependent. This presentation will bring to light new evidence developed using novel techniques to measure balance-relevant changes in sensorimotor function in young and older adults, and discuss how these age-related changes in sensorimotor control may be associated with changes in static and dynamic balance performance. Special consideration will be given to understanding how psychological factors, such as fear and anxiety, alters sensorimotor control and balance function, and further increases fall risk in older adults. The effectiveness of current balance interventions and fall prevention strategies will be discussed, as well as future directions for aging and balance research.

Speaker bio: 

Dr. Mark Carpenter is a Professor, and Co-Director pro tem in the School of Kinesiology at UBC. He is the Director of the Neural Control of Posture and Movement Laboratory and Co-director of the UBC Balance and Falls Research Centre.

After receiving his PhD in Kinesiology at the University of Waterloo in 2001, Dr. Carpenter completed a post-doctoral fellowship at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden.  He joined UBC as a CIHR funded Canada Research Chair in 2005.

He has authored more than 160 published journal articles and book chapters and is internationally recognized for his research on the topics of balance, fear of falling and the sensori-motor control of posture.

Dr. Carpenter’s research applies novel combinations of biomechanical and neurophysiological techniques to examine the central and peripheral mechanisms that contribute to static and dynamic balance control. His research aims to understand the neuro-muscular and cognitive-emotional factors that contribute to balance deficits associated with aging, proprioceptive and vestibular loss, and Parkinson’s disease. He is best known for his unique application of real and virtual threats to investigate how fear and anxiety influence the sensor-motor control of human balance and movement.

Link to register: https://ubc.zoom.us/meeting/register/qnQs0NhdRM2aqHSERJZaUg