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A meta-analysis: Parkinson's disease and dual-task walking
Tiphanie E Raffegeau1, Lisa M Krehbiel1, Nyeonju Kang2
1Applied Physiology and Kinesiology Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA.
Parkinsonism & Related Disorders
|December 31, 2018
Summary
Dual tasks significantly impair walking performance in people with Parkinson's disease (PD). This negative effect on gait is consistent across various dual-task types and gait speeds in individuals with PD.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Gerontology
- Rehabilitation Medicine
Background:
- Growing literature highlights dual-task impacts on gait in Parkinson's disease (PD).
- Understanding these effects is crucial for managing mobility and fall risk in PD patients.
Purpose of the Study:
- To systematically synthesize existing research and quantify the overall effect of dual tasks on gait performance in individuals with PD.
- To investigate whether gait speed or dual-task type moderates the impact on gait.
Main Methods:
- A comprehensive meta-analysis was performed on 19 studies meeting strict inclusion criteria.
- Moderator analyses examined dual-task effects based on single-task gait speed and dual-task type (arithmetic, language, memory, motor).
- A random-effects model was employed to analyze the synthesized data.
Main Results:
- Dual tasks demonstrated a strong negative effect on walking performance in people with PD (SMD = -0.68).
- This detrimental effect persisted irrespective of the mean single-task gait speed of the studies.
- Gait speed deterioration occurred across all tested types of dual tasks.
Conclusions:
- Dual tasks significantly and negatively impact gait performance in individuals with Parkinson's disease.
- The findings underscore the vulnerability of PD patients' walking abilities when performing concurrent cognitive or motor tasks.
- Interventions aimed at improving dual-tasking abilities may be beneficial for enhancing gait in PD.