title: A comparison of two walking while talking paradigms in aging.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Our study aimed to [1] compare dual-task costs in gait and cognitive performance during two dual-task paradigms: walking while reciting alternate letters of the alphabet (WWR) and walking while counting backward by sevens (WWC); [2] examine the relationship between the gait and cognitive interference tasks when performed concurrently.
  
  
  METHODS
  Gait and cognitive performance were tested in 217 non-demented older adults (mean age 76 ± 8.8 years; 56.2% female) under single and dual-task conditions. Velocity (cm/s) was obtained using an instrumented walkway. Cognitive performance was assessed using accuracy ratio: [correct responses]/[total responses]. Linear mixed effects models revealed significant dual-task costs, with slower velocity (p < .01) and decreased accuracy ratio (p < .01) in WWR and WWC compared to their respective single task conditions. Greater dual-task costs in velocity (p < .01) were observed in WWC compared to WWR. Pearson correlations revealed significant and positive relationships between gait and cognitive performance in WWR and WWC (p < .01); increased accuracy ratio was associated with faster velocity.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our findings suggested that dual-task costs in gait increase as the complexity of the cognitive task increases. Furthermore, the positive association between the gait and cognitive tasks suggest that dual-task performance was not influenced by task prioritization strategies in this sample.
authors: Clinical Psychology Health Emphasis, Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology, Yeshiva University, United States.
authors: Clara
authors: C
authors: Li
authors: Saul R. Korey Department of Neurology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Yeshiva University, United States.
authors: Joe
authors: J
authors: Verghese
authors: Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology, Department of Neurology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Yeshiva University, United States. Electronic address: roee.holtzer@einstein.yu.edu.
authors: Roee
authors: R
authors: Holtzer
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D012984:Software; D013060:Speech; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis; D016138:Walking / Q000502:physiology*
keywords: Attention; Dual-task; Elderly; Walking; Walking while talking