title: The effects of a simultaneous cognitive or motor task on the kinematics of walking in older fallers and non-fallers.
abstract: Human gait has been widely investigated under dual-task conditions because it has been demonstrated to be an important way to uncover differences in gait biomechanics between older fallers and non-fallers. However, exactly how simultaneous tasks affect the kinematics of walking remains unclear. In the present study, gait kinematic properties of older fallers and non-fallers were compared under cognitive and motor dual-task conditions. The gait kinematic properties of interest were recorded under three different conditions: walking at preferred speed, walking when performing a cognitive task (naming animals), and walking when performing a motor task (transferring a coin from one pocket to the other). The following variables were analyzed: gait speed, cadence, stride time, step length, single support, stride time variability, and the dual-task cost. In addition, functional balance was evaluated by means of the Balance Evaluation - Systems Test (BESTest). Two-way repeated-measures ANOVAs revealed significant main effects of walking conditions. However, no significant main effects of group (fallers vs. non-fallers) and no significant interaction effects between group and walking condition were observed. The BESTest revealed that functional balance in fallers was worse than in non-fallers. The cognitive task leads to more significant changes in gait kinematics than does a motor task and the step length and stride time variability were variables more sensitive to that cognitive influence.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory for Evaluation and Recovery of Balance, Department of Biomechanics, Medicine and Rehabilitation of the Locomotor System, School of Medicine of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, SP, Brazil. Electronic address: renatocfjunior@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Renato Campos
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Freire Júnior
authors.affiliation: Laboratory for Evaluation and Recovery of Balance, Department of Biomechanics, Medicine and Rehabilitation of the Locomotor System, School of Medicine of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Jaqueline Mello
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Porto
authors.affiliation: Sacred Heart University, USC, Bauru, Brazil.
authors.forename: Nise Ribeiro
authors.initials: NR
authors.lastname: Marques
authors.affiliation: Laboratory for Evaluation and Recovery of Balance, Department of Biomechanics, Medicine and Rehabilitation of the Locomotor System, School of Medicine of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Paola Errera
authors.initials: PE
authors.lastname: Magnani
authors.affiliation: Laboratory for Evaluation and Recovery of Balance, Department of Biomechanics, Medicine and Rehabilitation of the Locomotor System, School of Medicine of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Daniela Cristina Carvalho de
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Abreu
mesh_terms: D000058:Accidental Falls; D000368:Aged; D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology*; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D005684:Gait / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011939:Mental Recall / Q000502:physiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D011340:Problem Solving / Q000502:physiology*; D012307:Risk Factors; D016138:Walking / Q000502:physiology*; D000072797:Walking Speed / Q000502:physiology
keywords: Aging; Biomechanics; Dual-task gait; Falls