A study of safety and tolerability of rotatory vestibular input for preschool children

Wen-Ching Su,1 Chin-Kai Lin,1 Shih-Chung Chang2,3 1Program of Early Intervention, Department of Early Childhood Education, National Taichung University of Education, Taichung, Taiwan; 2Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan; 3School of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan Abstract: The objectives of this study were to determine a safe rotatory vestibular ­stimulation input for preschool children and to study the effects of grade level and sex of preschool children during active, passive, clockwise, and counterclockwise rotation vestibular input. This study adopted purposive sampling with 120 children from three kindergarten levels (K1, K2, and K3) in Taiwan. The subjects ranged in age from 46 to 79 months of age (mean: 62.1 months; standard deviation =9.60). This study included testing with four types of vestibular rotations. The number, duration, and speed of rotations were recorded. The study found that the mean number of active rotations was 10.28; the mean duration of rotation was 24.17 seconds; and the mean speed was 2.29 seconds per rotation. The mean number of passive rotations was 23.04. The differences in number of rotations in clockwise, counterclockwise, active, and passive rotations were not statistically significant. Sex and grade level were not important related factors in the speed and time of active rotation. Different sexes, rotation methods (active, passive), and grades made significant differences in the number of rotations. The safety and tolerability of rotatory vestibular stimulation input data obtained in this study can provide useful reference data for therapists using sensory integration therapy. Keywords: sensory integration, rotatory vestibular stimulation, tolerable input for rotatory vestibular stimulation