THESIS
2017
xx, 135 pages : illustrations (some color) ; 30 cm
Abstract
Humans perceive motion information using vestibular and visual organs. Conflicts in
motion information perceived from the two systems have been investigated as the
major cause of visually induced motion sickness (VIMS). However little is known in
the brain hemodynamics responses associated with VIMS provoking stimuli. In
particular, whether these brain responses differ between people with different
susceptibility to motion sickness is unknown. Indeed, cortical brain response to real
physical movement is also poorly documented. This study uses Near-infrared
spectroscopy (NIRS) to study the cortical hemodynamic responses to circular
vection when watching VIMS provoking stimuli. The research comprises three parts
and five studies. First, the cortical areas responding to real physi...[
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Humans perceive motion information using vestibular and visual organs. Conflicts in
motion information perceived from the two systems have been investigated as the
major cause of visually induced motion sickness (VIMS). However little is known in
the brain hemodynamics responses associated with VIMS provoking stimuli. In
particular, whether these brain responses differ between people with different
susceptibility to motion sickness is unknown. Indeed, cortical brain response to real
physical movement is also poorly documented. This study uses Near-infrared
spectroscopy (NIRS) to study the cortical hemodynamic responses to circular
vection when watching VIMS provoking stimuli. The research comprises three parts
and five studies. First, the cortical areas responding to real physical motion are investigated. The purpose was to identify the cortical areas sensitive to vestibular
stimuli. Results of studies 1 and 2 indicate that different cortical hemodynamics were
found in response to different motion conditions (lateral, fore-aft and sway motion)
and circular swaying motion produced the strongest hemodynamic responses. The
relationships between VIMS susceptibility and patterns in brain hemodynamic
responses during vection were studied in the second part. Results of studies 3 and
4 indicate that the upper lateral area in the right hemisphere and the occipital region
of the brain were oxygenated during circular vection, while regions around
intraparietal cortex were found to be significantly and consistently affected by motion
sickness susceptibility. This is partially consistent with the reciprocal inhibition theory
between the visual and vestibular cortices (Brandt et al., 1998). The third part of the
research was a pilot study to examine the effects of adaptation on VIMS
susceptibility and the regional brain hemodynamic responses. After 7-days
desensitization training, the cortical hemodynamic responses of the motion sickness
susceptible participant converged to those of non-susceptible participants in the
cortical areas which have been identified to be significantly affected by motion
sickness susceptibility. In summary, this thesis investigated human cortical regions
which could respond to real physical motion and identified cortical responses which
are highly correlated with motion sickness susceptibility.
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