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Measurement & Analysis of the Temporal Discrimination Threshold Applied to Cervical Dystonia
Published on: January 27, 2018
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A gait-based paradigm to investigate central body representation in cervical dystonia patients
O Crisafulli1, E Ravizzotti2, S Mezzarobba2,3
1Department of Public Health, Experimental and Forensic Medicine, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy.
Summary
Patients with cervical dystonia (CD) struggle with blindfolded walking, deviating from their path due to impaired body position awareness. This suggests a potential proprioceptive deficit affecting gait control in CD.
Area of Science:
- Neurology
- Movement Disorders
- Gait Analysis
Background:
- Cervical dystonia (CD) causes abnormal head posture impacting visual orientation.
- Altered sense of straight ahead (SSA) in CD patients may affect gait without visual cues.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate cervical dystonia patients' gait behavior during blindfolded walking.
- To assess gait control using only somatosensory and vestibular information in CD.
Main Methods:
- Observational cross-sectional study comparing CD patients and healthy controls (HC).
- Gait analysis using GAITRite carpet during blindfolded walking.
- Participants relied on their intrinsic sense of straightness.
Main Results:
- CD patients exhibited reduced path length and fewer steps.
- More CD patients deviated off the carpet compared to HC.
- Gait deviation was not linked to the dystonic side but correlated with pain.
Conclusions:
- CD patients have impaired dynamic body location control without visual input.
- Proprioceptive impairment may underlie poor body position awareness in CD.
- Gait trajectory deviations are not associated with the dystonic side.
