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Task-dependent deterioration of balance underpinning cognitive-postural interference in MS
Luca Prosperini1, Letizia Castelli2, Francesca De Luca2
1From the Department of Neurology and Psychiatry, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy. luca.prosperini@uniroma1.it.
Neurology
|August 14, 2016
Summary
Cognitive tasks, particularly those involving executive functions like the Stroop Color-Word Test, significantly impair balance control in multiple sclerosis patients more than in healthy individuals.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Rehabilitation Medicine
- Human Motor Control
Background:
- Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a demyelinating disease affecting the central nervous system.
- MS often leads to impaired balance and cognitive deficits.
- Understanding the interplay between cognitive and postural control is crucial for managing MS.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine which specific concurrent cognitive task most negatively impacts balance in individuals with MS.
- To compare the dual-task costs on balance and cognition between MS patients and healthy controls.
Main Methods:
- A dual-task experiment involving 52 MS patients and 26 controls.
- Balance was assessed using static posturography.
- Cognitive performance was measured using the Symbol Digit Modalities Test (SDMT), word list generation (WLG), and Stroop Color-Word Test (SCWT).
Main Results:
- MS patients exhibited greater postural sway and poorer cognitive scores than controls in both single and dual-task conditions.
- Dual-tasking significantly worsened balance in all participants, irrespective of the cognitive task.
- A significant interaction effect showed that the Stroop Color-Word Test (SCWT) imposed a greater dual-task cost on balance for MS patients compared to controls.
Conclusions:
- Cognitive tasks requiring executive functions, such as discriminating conflicting stimuli (e.g., SCWT), are most effective in revealing cognitive-postural interference in MS.
- This finding supports the hypothesis that MS-related neurological damage affects brain networks essential for both balance and executive functions.
