The influence of adipose tissue location on postural control

A growing body of evidence suggests, that excessive body weight is inseparably connected with postural instability. In none of previous studies, body weight distribution has been considered as a factor, which may affect results of a static posturography. The purpose of the present study is to quantify some center of foot pressure (COP) characteristics in 40 obese women with android type of obesity (waist-to-hip ratio - WHR ≥ 0.85, BMI: 37.5 ± 5.4) and 40 obese women with gynoid type of obesity (WHR < 0.85, BMI: 36.9 ± 5.1). Variables of postural sway were acquired while subjects were standing quietly on a force plate with eyes open and closed. Both in the sagittal and frontal plane sway range, average velocity, and maximal velocity of COP were calculated. Moreover, the total average velocity and total maximal velocity of the COP displacement were computed.Women with abdominal obesity showed a larger sway range in the anterior-posterior plane with eyes open (p < 0.0282) and eyes closed conditions (p < 0.0115) and a greater maximal COP velocity to compare with subjects with gynoidal obese type (p < 0.0112) with eyes closed condition.The postural stability in obese women from the biomechanical point of view is strongly dependent on body distribution. Women with the abdominal obesity type may be exposed to a greater risk of postural instability as compare to women with gynoid fat distribution.