Physical Therapy Publications
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
9-2015
Journal
Canadian Geriatrics Journal
Volume
18
Issue
3
First Page
159
Last Page
167
URL with Digital Object Identifier
https://doi.org/10.5770/cgj.18.188
Abstract
Background
The annual Scientific Meeting of the Canadian Association on Gerontology was held on October 24 and 25, 2008 in London, Ontario. Prior to the annual meeting, mobility and cognition experts met on October 23, 2008 to engage in a pre-conference workshop.
Methods
Discussions during the workshop addressed novel areas of research and knowledge and research gaps pertaining to the interaction between mobility and cognition in seniors.
Results
Workshop presenters moved from the neuromuscular, biomechanics, and neurology of gait impairments, and falls through the role of cognition and mood on mobility regulation to the whole person in the environment. Research gaps were identified.
Conclusions
Despite a consensus that mobility and cognition are increasingly correlated as people age, several gaps in our understanding of mechanisms and how to assess the interaction were recognized. The gaps originally identified in 2008 are still pertinent today. Common and standardized assessments for “mobility and cognition” are still not in place in current practice. Interventions that target mobility and cognitive decline as a single entity are still lacking.
