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  • The effects of a simultaneo...
    Freire Júnior, Renato Campos; Porto, Jaqueline Mello; Marques, Nise Ribeiro; Magnani, Paola Errera; Abreu, Daniela Cristina Carvalho de

    Human movement science, January 2017, 2017-Jan, 2017-01-00, 20170101, Letnik: 51
    Journal Article

    •Discussion about changes gait kinematics in older faller during dual-task gait.•Older fallers and non-fallers had similar abnormalities on gait during dual task gait.•Cognitive dual task gait challenges more older adults than motor dual task gait. 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.