As individuals age, they may experience a decline in gait automaticity, which requires increased attentional resources for the control of gait. This age-related decline in gait automaticity has been shown to contribute to higher prefrontal cortex (PFC) activation and lower dual-task performance during dual-task walking in older adults. This study is to investigate the effect of treadmill walking on PFC activation and dual-task performance in older adults. A total of 20 older adults (mean age, 64.35 ± 2.74 years) and 20 younger adults (mean age, 30.00 ± 3.15 years) performed single- and dual-task walking in overground and treadmill conditions. A wearable functional near-infrared spectroscopy and gait analyzer were used to analyze PFC activation and dual-task performance, respectively. To determine the dual-task (gait and cognitive) performance, the dual-task cost (DTC) was calculated using the following formula: (single-task − dual-task)/single-task × 100. In both groups, dual-task treadmill walking led to reduced PFC activation and reduced DTC compared to dual-task overground walking. Furthermore, despite a higher DTC in gait variability, correct response, total response, response index and a higher error score in older adults than in younger adults during overground walking, there was no difference in treadmill walking. The difference in PFC activation between single- and dual-tasks was also observed only in overground walking. Performing dual-task walking on a treadmill compared to overground walking results in different levels of dual-task performance and PFC activity. Specifically, older adults are able to maintain similar levels of dual-task performance as younger adults while walking on a treadmill, with reduced PFC activation due to the automaticity induced by the treadmill. Therefore, older adults who exhibit low dual-task performance during overground walking may be able to improve their performance while walking on a treadmill with fewer attentional resources.
Background Studies using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) have shown that dual-task walking leads to greater prefrontal cortex (PFC) activation compared to the single-task walking task. However, evidence on age-related changes in PFC activity patterns is inconsistent. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the changes in the activation patterns of PFC subregions in different activation phases (early and late phases) during both single-task and dual-task walking in both older and younger adults. Methods Overall, 20 older and 15 younger adults performed a walking task with and without a cognitive task. The activity of the PFC subregions in different phases (early and late phases) and task performance (gait and cognitive task) were evaluated using fNIRS and a gait analyzer. Results The gait (slower speed and lower cadence) and cognitive performance (lower total response, correct response and accuracy rate, and higher error rate) of older adults was poorer during the dual task than that of younger adults. Right dorsolateral PFC activity in the early period in older adults was higher than that in younger adults, which declined precipitously during the late period. Conversely, the activity level of the right orbitofrontal cortex in the dual-task for older adults was lower than for younger adults. Conclusions These altered PFC subregion-specific activation patterns in older adults would indicate a decline in dual-task performance with aging.
Background Older adults have higher prefrontal cortex (PFC) activation and lower dual-task performance than younger adults because of age-related physical and cognitive functional impairments. Objective To investigate the effect of treadmill walking on PFC activation and dual-task performance in older adults. Methods A total of 20 older adults (mean age, 64.35 ± 2.74 years) and 20 younger adults (mean age, 30.00 ± 3.15 years) performed single- and dual-task walking in overground and treadmill conditions. A wearable functional near-infrared spectroscopy device and gait analyzer were used to analyze PFC activation and dual-task cost (DTC). Results In both groups, treadmill walking demonstrated reduced PFC activation while dual-task walking and reduced DTC compared to overground walking. Furthermore, despite a higher DTC in gait variability, correct response, total response, response index and a higher error score in older adults than in younger adults during overground walking, there was no difference in treadmill walking. The difference in PFC activation between single and dual tasks was also observed only in overground walking. There was no difference in PFC activation between the two age groups. Conclusions Older adults can maintain the similar level of dual-task performance as younger adults in treadmill walking, with PFC activation reduced. However, although older adults recruit PFC level similar to that in younger adults in overground walking, older adults show lower dual-task performance than younger adults due to inefficient use of PFC with aging. This indicates that treadmill and overground walking do not share similar activation patterns during dual-task walking.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.