Camp Nicola, Vagnetti Roberto, Bisele Maria, Felton Paul, Hunter Kirsty, Magistro Daniele
School of Science and Technology, Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham NG11 8NS, UK.
Brain Sci. 2023 Jun 30;13(7):1019. doi: 10.3390/brainsci13071019.
Dual-task activities are essential within everyday life, requiring visual-spatial memory (VSM) and mobility skills. Navigational memory is an important component of VSM needed to carry out everyday activities, but this is often not included in traditional tests such as the Corsi block tapping test (CBT). The Walking Corsi Test (WalCT) allows both VSM and navigational memory to be tested together, as well as allowing measures of gait to be collected, thus providing a more complete understanding of dual-task function. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of an increasingly complex cognitive task on gait in a healthy adult population, using the WalCT and body-worn inertial measurement unit (IMU) sensors. Participants completed both the CBT and WalCT, where they were asked to replicate increasingly complex sequences until they were no longer able to carry this out correctly. IMU sensors were worn on the shins throughout the WalCT to assess changes in gait as task complexity increased. Results showed that there were significant differences in several gait parameters between completing a relatively simple cognitive task and completing a complex task. The type of memory used also appeared to have an impact on some gait variables. This indicates that even within a healthy population, gait is affected by cognitive task complexity, which may limit function in everyday dual-task activities.
双重任务活动在日常生活中至关重要，需要视觉空间记忆（VSM）和行动技能。导航记忆是进行日常活动所需的VSM的一个重要组成部分，但在传统测试如科西块点击测试（CBT）中通常不包括这一项。步行科西测试（WalCT）能同时测试VSM和导航记忆，还能收集步态测量数据，从而更全面地了解双重任务功能。本研究的目的是使用WalCT和可穿戴式惯性测量单元（IMU）传感器，调查在健康成年人群体中，日益复杂的认知任务对步态的影响。参与者完成了CBT和WalCT，在测试中他们被要求重复越来越复杂的序列，直到无法正确完成为止。在整个WalCT过程中，参与者的小腿上都佩戴着IMU传感器，以评估随着任务复杂性增加步态的变化。结果显示，完成相对简单的认知任务和完成复杂任务之间，在几个步态参数上存在显著差异。所使用的记忆类型似乎也对一些步态变量有影响。这表明，即使在健康人群中，步态也会受到认知任务复杂性的影响，这可能会限制日常双重任务活动中的功能。
