Texting While Walking Induces Gait Pattern Alterations in Healthy Older Adults
Massimiliano PauMicaela PortaGiuseppina PilloniFederica CoronaMaria Chiara FastamePaul Kenneth HitchcottMaria Pietronilla Penna
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The use of a mobile phone for texting purposes results in distracted walking which may lead to injuries. In particular, texting while walking has been shown to induce significant alterations in gait patterns. This study aimed to assess whether changes in the main spatio-temporal parameters of gait when simultaneously engaged in texting on a smartphone and walking are different in older adults relative to young and middle- aged individuals. A total of 57 participants divided in three groups (19 older adults aged over 65, 19 young aged 20-40 and 19 middle-aged aged 41-64) were tested in two conditions: walking, and walking while texting on a smartphone. Spatio-temporal parameters of gait were assessed using a wearable accelerometer located on the lower back. The results show that texting induced similar reduction of gait speed, stride length and cadence in all groups. Slight (although significant) alterations of stance, swing and double support phases duration were found only for middle-aged participants. Such findings suggest that modifications of gait patterns due to texting seem unaffected by age, probably due to different perceptions of the cognitive complexity of the task and differential prioritization of its motor and cognitive aspects.Keywords:
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The purpose of this study was to describe and statistically analyze 3- and 5-year-old children's gait at slow, free, and fast speeds in terms of stride length, step length (adjusted for leg length), stride width, included angle of feet, and cadence. The study also correlated gait factors and motor development. Gait patterns were recorded with a clinical, footprint method. In general, stride length and cadence were significantly different for age and speed, and step length and stride width were significantly different only for speed. Included angle of feet was not significant for age or speed. Motor ability as measured by the McCarthy Scales of Children's Abilities correlated only with stride length and cadence. It was concluded that gait patterns in 3- and 5-year-old children are not fully mature. Perhaps the interrelationship between gait factors, age, and speed, as well as the relationships among gait factors, present a more realistic analysis of gait in these children than if the variables were considered in isolation. Further research is needed to determine how variability of a child's gait decreases and which gait factors and conditions can be used appropriately to determine gait maturity.
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Introduction: Activating the upper body during walking, Nordic walking (NW) may be used as an external cueing to improve spatiotemporal parameters of gait, such as stride length or gait variability, in Parkinson disease (PD). Structured gait variability, revealed by the presence of long-range autocorrelations (LRA), was associated to dynamic stability of gait. Dynamic stability has been de ned as the ability to maintain functional locomotion despite the presence of internal or external disturbances, which is a feature of healthy locomotor system. Purpose: To assess bene cial e ects of NW on dynamic stability of gait and spatiotemporal gait parameters in PD. Methods: Fourteen mild to moderate PD patients performed 2×12min overground walking sessions (with and without pole in a randomized order) at a comfortable speed. Gait speed, cadence, step length and tem- poral organization (i.e. LRA) of stride duration variability were studied on 512 consecutive gait cycles using a unidimensional accelerometer placed on the malleola of the most a ected side. e presence of LRA was determined using the Rescaled Range Analysis (Hurst exponent) and the power spectral density (a exponent). To assess NW in uence on PD gait, a paired t-test was used. Results: All patients presented LRA during both walking sessions. However, Hurst and a exponents were sig- ni cantly higher during NW (p<0,001). While gait speed remained unchanged between two walking sessions, gait cadence decreased (p=0,009) and step length increased signi cantly (p=0,003). Discussion and conclusions: is study demonstrates that Nordic walking can improve the dynamic stabil- ity of gait in PD. Involving a voluntary intersegmental coordination, such improvement could also be due to the upper body rhythmic movements acting as rhythmical external cue to bypass their defective basal ganglia circuitries. erefore, Nordic walking may constitute a powerful way to manage gait disorders in PD.
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The change of gait in stroke patients after gait training or surgery for foot deformity was analyzed according to walking cycle and gait speed and cadence by means of the accelorometer or the large force plate. The results were summarized as follows. Twenty patients receiving gait training. Variation of the stride duration decreased gradually on both sides. The stance phase and the double support phase had the tendency to demonstrate equal percentage on both sides, decreasing in the unaffected side. The percentage values were higher than those in the normal person except a few cases. The cadence increased in all cases except one. Twenty-two patients following surgery for foot deformities. Walking cycle revealed almost the same result as that of cases receiving gait training. The percentage of the double support phase in the unaffected side characteristically approached that of the affected side after surgery, suggesting surgical benefits. Cadence decreased in 7 cases, while gait speed increased in all cases. It may come from the wider stride length after surgery.
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Summary Study aim: The aim of this study was to compare the outcomes of a study of post-stroke gait reeducation using the Bobath neuro‑developmental treatment (NDT-Bobath) method and the traditional approach. Material and methods: The study included 30 adult patients after ischemic stroke, aged 32-82. Patients were randomly assigned to one of the treatment groups: the study group (treated with the NDT-Bobath method combined with the traditional approach, ten sessions), and a reference group (treated with the traditional method only, ten sessions). The measurements (spatio-temporal gait parameters based on 10 m walking test: gait velocity, normalized gait velocity, cadence, normalized cadence, stride length, and normalized stride length) were administered twice: on admission (before the therapy) and after the last therapy session. Results: Statistically significant and favorable changes in the gait velocity, cadence and stride length regarding their normalized values were observed. Moderate and high correlations among changes of assessed spatio-temporal gait parameters were observed in both groups. Conclusions: The NDT-Bobath method may be regarded as a more effective form of gait post-stroke rehabilitation in young adults compared to traditional rehabilitation.
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