None listed
Conditions
Brief summary
Difficulty performing more than one task at a time (dual tasking) is a common and disabling problem experienced by people with Parkinson disease (PD). If asked to perform another task when walking, people with PD have repeatedly shown markedly altered gait, such as taking shorter steps or walking more slowly. Currently there is uncertainty about whether clinicians should teach people with PD to avoid dual task performance or whether they should encourage them to practice dual-tasking with the hope that practice will lead to enhanced performance. This study will address this issue by comparing usual gait training to dual task gait training.
Interventions
Twelve, one-hour sessions of training walking to improve step length whilst concurrently performing added cognitive or motor tasks will be undertaken in a rehabilitation gym with a physiotherapist (three times a week for four weeks). Walking training will be one-on-one, progressed and include tasks such as walking, turning, and obstacle negotiation whilst concurrently performing added tasks such as conversation, mathematics, and route-finding. A home program of exercises and strategies will be p
Twelve, one-hour sessions of training walking to improve step length whilst concurrently performing added cognitive or motor tasks will be undertaken in a rehabilitation gym with a physiotherapist (three times a week for four weeks). Walking training will be one-on-one, progressed and include tasks such as walking, turning, and obstacle negotiation whilst concurrently performing added tasks such as conversation, mathematics, and route-finding. A home program of exercises and strategies will be provided.
Sponsors
A/Prof Sandra Brauer
Study design
Allocation
Randomised controlled trial
Intervention model
Parallel
Primary purpose
Treatment
Masking
Blinded (masking used)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
Diagnosed with ideopathic Parkinson's Disease, be medically stable, score >23 on the Mini Mental Status Examination, demonstrate gait hypokinesia
Exclusion criteria
Neurological conditions other than Parkinson's Disease, or musculoskeletal or cardiopulmonary conditions that affect the ability to safely walk repeatedly, dyskinesias that interfere with daily functioning, visual pathology, deafness,
Outcome results
None listed