School and Graduate Institute of Physical Therapy, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan.
Physical Therapy Center, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
J Parkinsons Dis. 2024;14(2):283-296. doi: 10.3233/JPD-230245.
Task prioritization involves allocating brain resources in a dual-task scenario, but the mechanistic details of how prioritization strategies affect dual-task walking performance for Parkinson's disease (PD) are little understood.
We investigated the performance benefits and corresponding neural signatures for people with PD during dual-task walking, using gait-prioritization (GP) and manual-prioritization (MP) strategies.
Participants (N = 34) were asked to hold two inter-locking rings while walking and to prioritize either taking big steps (GP strategy) or separating the two rings (MP strategy). Gait parameters and ring-touch time were measured, and scalp electroencephalograph was performed.
Compared with the MP strategy, the GP strategy yielded faster walking speed and longer step length, whereas ring-touch time did not significantly differ between the two strategies. The MP strategy led to higher alpha (8-12 Hz) power in the posterior cortex and beta (13-35 Hz) power in the left frontal-temporal area, but the GP strategy was associated with stronger network connectivity in the beta band. Changes in walking speed and step length because of prioritization negatively correlated with changes in alpha power. Prioritization-related changes in ring-touch time correlated negatively with changes in beta power but positively with changes in beta network connectivity.
A GP strategy in dual-task walking for PD can enhance walking speed and step length without compromising performance in a secondary manual task. This strategy augments attentional focus and facilitates compensatory reinforcement of inter-regional information exchange.
任务优先级分配涉及在双任务场景中分配大脑资源，但对于优先级分配策略如何影响帕金森病（PD）患者的双任务行走表现的机制细节知之甚少。
我们通过步态优先（GP）和手动优先（MP）策略，研究 PD 患者在双任务行走时的表现收益和相应的神经特征。
要求参与者（N=34）在行走时握住两个互锁环，并优先考虑大步走（GP 策略）或分开两个环（MP 策略）。测量步态参数和环触时间，并进行头皮脑电图。
与 MP 策略相比，GP 策略使行走速度更快，步长更长，而两种策略的环触时间没有显著差异。MP 策略导致后皮质的 alpha（8-12Hz）功率和左额颞区的 beta（13-35Hz）功率升高，但 GP 策略与 beta 波段更强的网络连通性相关。由于优先级变化导致的行走速度和步长变化与 alpha 功率的变化呈负相关。与优先相关的环触时间变化与 beta 功率的变化呈负相关，与 beta 网络连通性的变化呈正相关。
PD 患者在双任务行走中采用 GP 策略可以在不影响次要手动任务表现的情况下提高行走速度和步长。这种策略增强了注意力焦点，并促进了区域间信息交换的补偿性增强。
