Disclosures: Seigou Hashiguchi: No financial relationships or conflicts of interest
Objective : We fall down when we cannot cope with unpredictable perturbation during daily activity. In addition, this becomes more common when cognitive function decreases. Therefore, we investigated the influence of cognitive tasks on prefrontal hemodynamic response during walking with unpredictable perturbation in healthy adults.
Design: Cross-sectional research
Setting : Clinical rehabilitation center
Participants : Twelve healthy adults (age:28.7±9,M:4,F:8) with no cardiovascular or hemodynamic disturbance, neurologic or orthopedic disorders participated in this study.
Interventions: Participants performed 3 interventions for 2 minutes each; walking (W), walking with perturbation (WP), and walking with perturbation and cognitive task (WPC). We intervened in order of randomness at intervals of two days or more. We randomly added perturbation one of four directions during walking at five-second intervals by means of a treadmill-type balance training machine (Balance tutor, MediTouch LTD). We measured prefrontal hemodynamic response by near-infrared light spectroscopy (NIRS) during three interventions.
Main Outcome Measures: We measured oxyhemoglobin levels (HBO) of the right and left prefrontal hemispheres respectively by means of NIRS during W, WP and WPC. We compared the changes in HBO from a reference value during W, WP and WPC using Friedman test post hoc the Wilcoxon signed rank test. We used HBO with the subject resting in a standing position as the reference value.
Results: The left HBO change during WPC increased significantly more than W and WP (p>0.05). The right HBO change during WPC and WP increased significantly more than W (p>0.01). In addition, right HBO change during WPC increased significantly more than WP (p>0.01).
Conclusions: Cognitive tasks have an influence on prefrontal hemodynamic response during walking with unpredictable perturbation in healthy adults. Cognitive tasks during walking with unpredictable perturbation might be useful for training of cognitive function.
Level of Evidence: Level I
To cite this abstract in AMA style:
Hashiguchi S, Ito K, Kamura C, MATSUSE H, Hashida R. The Influence of Cognitive Tasks on Prefrontal Hemodynamic Response During Walking with Perturbation in Healthy Adults [abstract]. PM R. 2020; 12(S1)(suppl 1). https://pmrjabstracts.org/abstract/the-influence-of-cognitive-tasks-on-prefrontal-hemodynamic-response-during-walking-with-perturbation-in-healthy-adults/. Accessed May 16, 2025.« Back to AAPM&R Annual Assembly 2020
PM&R Meeting Abstracts - https://pmrjabstracts.org/abstract/the-influence-of-cognitive-tasks-on-prefrontal-hemodynamic-response-during-walking-with-perturbation-in-healthy-adults/