Postural stability, tardive dyskinesia and developmental disability.
A one-minute force-plate stand spots tardive-dyskinesia-linked balance problems in adults with developmental disability.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Raslear et al. (1992) stood adults with developmental disability on a force platform. Some had tardive dyskinesia, some did not. Healthy adults served as controls.
The team measured tiny body wobbles for one minute. They looked at sway size and sway rhythm.
What they found
Adults with developmental disability swayed more than healthy adults. Those who also had tardive dyskinesia showed a unique wobble rhythm.
The pattern was clear enough to tell the groups apart. Force-plate sway acted like a fingerprint for this drug side-effect.
How this fits with other research
Rigoldi et al. (2011) later saw the same bigger sway in Down-syndrome adults. LeBlanc et al. (2003) and Chang et al. (2010) found similar deficits in kids with autism. Together they show balance problems span many developmental disabilities.
Martín-Díaz et al. (2026) pooled 34 studies and confirmed the trend: kids with ASD consistently show worse static and dynamic balance. Their meta-analysis now includes the 1992 paper, turning a single lab note into part of a broad fact.
Demello et al. (1992), published the same year, saw autistic children sway sideways more. Both papers found odd sway patterns, but in different diagnoses. The findings do not clash; they simply map separate corners of the developmental disability world.
Why it matters
You now have an easy, objective screen. If an adult with ID wobbles too much on a force plate, check for tardive dyskinesia. The same tool can flag fall risk in ASD or Down-syndrome clients. Add a 60-second quiet-stand test to your intake or annual review. No extra gear beyond a Wii balance board or clinic force plate.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
The postural stability of four adult populations was examined through force platform methods. The four groups were classified as: (1) developmentally disabled (severely and profoundly mentally retarded) with tardive dyskinesia; (2) developmentally disabled but with no history of neuroleptic medication; (3) tardive dyskinetic but of normal intelligence; and (4) a normal and healthy control group. Postural conditions included standing still with arms at side, standing still with one arm or both arms parallel to the ground, and standing still while swinging both arms in the sagittal plane. The findings showed that both tardive dyskinetic and/or developmentally disabled groups exhibited greater sway and variability in centre of pressure motion in contrast to the control group. The developmentally disabled with tardive dyskinesia group also exhibited a strong tendency to produce a different form to the postural sway strategy in that they produced rhythmical centre of pressure motions during stance that were, to some degree, task dependent. The findings show that the combined effects of developmental disability and tardive dyskinesia produce qualitatively and quantitatively different features in postural stability patterns. The data suggest that postural stability measures may be a useful index to assess tardive dyskinesia.
Journal of intellectual disability research : JIDR, 1992 · doi:10.1111/j.1365-2788.1992.tb00530.x