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Prefrontal Cortex Activation While Walking Under Dual-Task Conditions in Stroke: A Multimodal Imaging Study
Emad Al-Yahya1, Heidi Johansen-Berg2, Udo Kischka3
1The University of Jordan, Amman, Jordan Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, UK e.alyahya@ju.edu.jo.
Neurorehabilitation and Neural Repair
|October 24, 2015
Summary
Stroke survivors show increased brain activity when walking and performing a cognitive task simultaneously. This enhanced brain activation is linked to greater declines in walking ability, highlighting the neural basis of dual-task challenges.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Rehabilitation Medicine
- Gait Analysis
Background:
- Walking while multitasking is difficult for stroke survivors.
- The neural mechanisms underlying dual-task walking challenges in stroke are not well understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine prefrontal cortex activation during single-task (ST) and dual-task (DT) walking in stroke survivors.
- To correlate brain activation with gait performance under ST and DT conditions.
Main Methods:
- Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) were used to measure brain activity.
- Participants included chronic stroke survivors and healthy controls performing treadmill walking and simulated walking under ST and DT conditions.
Main Results:
- Both groups showed increased prefrontal cortex oxygenated hemoglobin during DT walking compared to ST walking.
- Stroke survivors exhibited greater increases in brain activation from ST to DT conditions, which correlated with motor performance decrements.
- fMRI identified increased activation in specific brain regions (e.g., inferior temporal gyri, superior frontal gyri) during DT walking in stroke patients, correlating with behavioral changes.
Conclusions:
- Enhanced brain activity changes are associated with dual-task motor decrements in stroke survivors.
- These findings provide novel insights into the neural basis of dual-task walking impairments after stroke.
