Toepfer Max, Padilla Alejandra, Ponto Kevin, Mason Andrea H, Pickett Kristen A
Program in Occupational Therapy, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53750, USA.
Department of Kinesiology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53750, USA.
Healthcare (Basel). 2020 Oct 6;8(4):386. doi: 10.3390/healthcare8040386.
Quantification of gait changes in response to altered environmental stimuli may allow for improved understanding of the mechanisms that influence gait changes and fall occurrence in older adults. This study explored how systematic manipulation of a single dimension of one's environment affects spatiotemporal gait parameters. A total of 20 older adult participants walked at a self-selected pace in a constructed research hallway featuring a mobile wall, which allowed manipulation of the hallway width between three conditions: 1.14 m, 1.31 m, and 1.48 m. Spatiotemporal data from participants' walks were captured using an instrumented GAITRite mat. A repeated measures ANOVA revealed older adults spent significantly more time in double support in the narrowest hallway width compared to the widest, but did not significantly alter other spatiotemporal measures. Small-scale manipulations of a single dimension of the environment led to subtle, yet in some cases significant changes in gait, suggesting that small or even imperceptible environmental changes may contribute to altered gait patterns for older adults.
量化对环境刺激改变做出反应的步态变化，可能有助于更好地理解影响老年人步态变化和跌倒发生的机制。本研究探讨了对个人环境的单一维度进行系统操纵如何影响时空步态参数。共有20名老年参与者在一条设有可移动墙壁的人造研究走廊中以自己选择的速度行走，这使得走廊宽度能够在三种条件下进行操纵：1.14米、1.31米和1.48米。使用装有仪器的GAITRite垫子捕捉参与者行走的时空数据。重复测量方差分析显示，与最宽走廊宽度相比，老年人在最窄走廊宽度下的双支撑时间显著更长，但并未显著改变其他时空测量指标。对环境单一维度的小规模操纵导致步态出现细微但在某些情况下显著的变化，这表明微小甚至难以察觉的环境变化可能导致老年人步态模式改变。
