Spatial and temporal gait parameters in Alzheimer's disease and aging

Nadkarni, Neelesh K.; Mawji, Elysha; McIlroy, William E.; Black, Sandra E.

doi:10.1016/j.gaitpost.2009.07.003

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Volume 30, Issue 4 , Pages 452-454, November 2009

Spatial and temporal gait parameters in Alzheimer's disease and aging

Neelesh K. Nadkarni
- L. C. Campbell Cognitive Neurology Research Unit, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Heart and Stroke Foundation-Centre for Stroke Recovery, Neuroscience Research Program, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Division of Neurology, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Corresponding author at: A421, L.C. Campbell Cognitive Neurology Research Unit, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, 2075 Bayview Avenue, Toronto, ON, Canada M4N 3M5. Tel.: +1 416 4806100; fax: +416 480 4552.
Elysha Mawji
- L. C. Campbell Cognitive Neurology Research Unit, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
William E. McIlroy
- Heart and Stroke Foundation-Centre for Stroke Recovery, Neuroscience Research Program, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Division of Neurology, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Kinesiology, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Physical Therapy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Sandra E. Black
- L. C. Campbell Cognitive Neurology Research Unit, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Heart and Stroke Foundation-Centre for Stroke Recovery, Neuroscience Research Program, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Division of Neurology, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Rotman Research Institute, Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Corresponding author at: A421, L.C. Campbell Cognitive Neurology Research Unit, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, 2075 Bayview Avenue, Toronto, ON, Canada M4N 3M5. Tel.: +1 416 4806100; fax: +416 480 4552.

Received 6 November 2008; received in revised form 24 June 2009; accepted 3 July 2009. published online 09 September 2009.

Abstract

Spatial and temporal gait parameters in 40 patients with early Alzheimer's disease (AD) were compared to that of 34 normal controls (NC) on a level ground and on a treadmill. Over-ground velocity, cycle-time, cadence, stride-length, stride-width and double-support time were captured on an electronic walkway. On the treadmill, cadence, cycle-time and double-support time were recorded at a preferred velocity using footswitches. The AD group were significantly slower on the Timed Up and Go task compared to NC (p<0.05). AD patients differed significantly from the NC on their over-ground gait velocity (99±19cm/s vs 119+15cm/s, p<0.001), cadence (101±9 steps/min vs 109±9 steps/min, p=0.001) and stride-length (118±18cm vs 131±17cm, p<0.01). On the treadmill, only preferred speed was significantly different in the AD group compared to the NC group (60±20cm/s vs 74±23cm/s, p=0.02). These results indicate that patients with early AD walk slower and with shorter strides than healthy older adults.