title: The impact of depression on dual tasking among patients with high fall risk.
abstract: Depression predicts fall risk among older adults, and this relationship may be partially explained by depression-associated executive dysfunction, relevant to navigating demanding environments. This pilot study examined timed stepping accuracy under simple and complex dual-task conditions, using an instrumented walkway based on the Trail Making Test. Participants were balance-impaired older adults, either with (n = 8; major depressive disorder [MDD]) or without (n = 8; nondepressed [ND]) MDD. After accounting for comfortable gait speed and age, the MDD group was significantly slower than the ND group on the walkway with the highest cognitive demand and demonstrated greater dual-task cost, both of which were correlated with performance on traditional measures of executive functioning. No group differences were observed on the walkway with the least cognitive demand. Balance-impaired older adults with MDD demonstrate increased stepping accuracy time under cognitively demanding conditions, reflecting executive dysfunction and an additional contribution to increased fall risk.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI 48105, USA. sarawrig@med.umich.edu
authors.forename: Sara L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Wright
authors.forename: Rachel E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Kay
authors.forename: Erich T
authors.initials: ET
authors.lastname: Avery
authors.forename: Bruno
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Giordani
authors.forename: Neil B
authors.initials: NB
authors.lastname: Alexander
mesh_terms: D000058:Accidental Falls; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D005684:Gait / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology*; D012306:Risk; D014145:Trail Making Test; D016138:Walking / Q000502:physiology