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• Functional brain images of postural control were investigated in a meta-analysis. • Widespread cortical and subcortical brain regions are involved in postural control. • The cerebellum is activated consistently across postural control studies. Postural instability is a strong risk factor for falls that becomes more prominent with aging. To facilitate treatment and prevention of falls in an aging society, a thorough understanding of the neural networks underlying postural control is warranted. Here, we present a systematic review of the functional neuroimaging literature of studies measuring posture-related neural activity in healthy subjects. Study methods were overall heterogeneous. Eleven out of the 14 studies relied on postural simulation in a supine position (e.g. motor imagery). The key nodes of human postural control involved the brainstem, cerebellum, basal ganglia, thalamus and several cortical regions. An activation likelihood estimation meta-analysis revealed that the anterior cerebellum was consistently activated across the wide range of postural tasks. The cerebellum is known to modulate the brainstem nuclei involved in the control of posture. Hence, this systematic review with meta-analysis provides insight into the neural correlates which underpin human postural control and which may serve as a reference for future neural network and region of interest analyses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aims: The relationship between impaired postural control and freezing of gait (FOG) in Parkinson's disease (PD) is still unclear. Our aim was to identify if postural control deficits and gait dysfunction progress differently in freezers compared to non-freezers and whether this relates to FOG development.Methods: 76 PD patients, classified as freezer (n = 17) or non-freezer (n = 59), and 24 controls underwent a gait and postural control assessments at baseline and after 12 months follow-up. Non-freezers who developed FOG during the study period were categorized as FOG converters (n = 5). Gait was analyzed during walking at self-preferred pace. Postural control was assessed using the Mini-BESTest and its sub-categories: sensory orientation, anticipatory, reactive and dynamic postural control.Results: Mini-BESTest scores were lower in PD compared to controls (p < 0.001), and in freezers compared to non-freezers (p = 0.02). PD has worse anticipatory (p = 0.01), reactive (p = 0.02) and dynamic postural control (p = 0.003) compared to controls. Freezers scored lower on dynamic postural control compared to non-freezers (p = 0.02). There were no baseline differences between converters and non-converters. Decline in postural control was worse in PD compared to controls (p = 0.02) as shown by a greater decrease in the total Mini-BESTest score. Similar patterns were found in freezers (p = 0.006), who also showed more decline in anticipatory (p < 0.001) and dynamic postural control (p = 0.02) compared to non-freezers. FOG converters had a greater decline in the total Mini-BESTest (p = 0.005) and dynamic postural control scores (p = 0.04) compared to non-converters. Gait outcomes showed no significant differences in any of the analyses.Conclusion: FOG is associated with more severe decline in postural control, which can be detected by the clinical Mini-BESTest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]