Long-term effect of tongue stimulation on balance

Sensory substitution through tongue stimulation has also been used for restoring balance. A device that senses gravity, much like the sensors used in smart phones, sends signals regarding head tilt or body sway to the left, right, front, and back to the left, right, front and back of the tongue, respectively. Surprisingly, patients show improved balance for an extended period of time after disconnecting the device in each session. This post-stimulation effect becomes more pronounced with each session and with longer application times (see video). Information from multiple senses are used for maintaining proper balance and scientists believe that the long-term effect of the device is due to nonspecific effects on the vestibular (balance) pathway that results in improved use of other sensory signals, such as vision, somatosensory, and proprioception. In the present study, we investigate the idea that based on the same concept, using the vision-tongue device should improve the balance in blind patients through providing stimuli that are related to balance and spatial navigation as well as vision. One step further will be the idea that using any simple meaningful stimulation that provides information related to balance should be useful in patients with imbalance.