Oculomotor Exercises and Balance in Athletes

Summary

The goal of this interventional study is to evaluate the effects of a six-week eye-movement exercise program on balance in athletes aged 15 to 30 years participating in basketball, football, and boxing. The main question it aims to answer whether performing daily exercises based on a standardized protocol improves balance and functional interaction among the oculomotor, vestibular, and proprioceptive systems.

Participants will perform six different exercises daily for 10 minutes over six weeks. During the first four weeks, exercises are performed on both legs, while in the last two weeks, exercises are performed on the dominant leg on a 10 mm rubber mat to increase vestibular challenge and stimulate functional integration among the sensory systems.

Balance will be assessed using the Leonardo system and the Stork test (s), focusing on single-leg stance on the dominant leg with eyes open during the last two weeks of training. Reaction time will also be evaluated as a secondary outcome to provide additional insight into sensorimotor performance.

All participants provided informed consent, and for those under 18 years of age, parental consent was obtained. The study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the University of Sports of Tirana.

Conditions

• Static Postural Balance
• Reaction Time

Interventions

OTHER

Oculomotor Exercise Protocol

Participants perform a 6-exercise oculomotor training program specifically designed to improve postural balance through the visual-vestibular-proprioceptive systems. Each session lasts 10 minutes, conducted 5 days per week for 6 weeks. Weeks 1-4: Exercises are performed in a bipedal stance to develop basic oculomotor control. Weeks 5-6: Exercises are progressed to a single-leg stance on a 10-mm rubber mat to further challenge the vestibular and proprioceptive systems. Exercises include eye stretching, smooth pursuit, saccades, gaze stabilization, spatial localization, and vergence/convergence exercises. All sessions are supervised individually by a licensed physiotherapist. Participants continue their usual sports training during the study period. This intervention is distinct because it combines multiple oculomotor exercises over several weeks with progressive difficulty to target balance improvements in healthy athletes, unlike

OTHER

Usual Training

Participants continue their regular sports practice routine without performing any additional oculomotor exercises. This arm serves as a comparison to evaluate the effects of the oculomotor exercise protocol, isolating the impact of the experimental intervention from routine training.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Sport University of Tirana

  lead OTHER

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

SINGLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

15 Years

Max Age

30 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2024-11-20

Primary Completion

2025-07-10

Completion

2025-07-15

Countries

• Albania

Study Locations