Department of Medicine Publications
Association of Dual-Task Gait With Incident Dementia in Mild Cognitive Impairment: Results From the Gait and Brain Study.
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
7-1-2017
Journal
JAMA Neurology
Volume
74
Issue
7
First Page
857
Last Page
865
URL with Digital Object Identifier
doi:10.1001/jamaneurol.2017.0643
Abstract
Importance: Gait performance is affected by neurodegeneration in aging and has the potential to be used as a clinical marker for progression from mild cognitive impairment (MCI) to dementia. A dual-task gait test evaluating the cognitive-motor interface may predict dementia progression in older adults with MCI.
Objective: To determine whether a dual-task gait test is associated with incident dementia in MCI.
Design, Setting, and Participants: The Gait and Brain Study is an ongoing prospective cohort study of community-dwelling older adults that enrolled 112 older adults with MCI. Participants were followed up for 6 years, with biannual visits including neurologic, cognitive, and gait assessments. Data were collected from July 2007 to March 2016.
Main Outcomes and Measures: Incident all-cause dementia was the main outcome measure, and single- and dual-task gait velocity and dual-task gait costs were the independent variables. A neuropsychological test battery was used to assess cognition. Gait velocity was recorded under single-task and 3 separate dual-task conditions using an electronic walkway. Dual-task gait cost was defined as the percentage change between single- and dual-task gait velocities: ([single-task gait velocity - dual-task gait velocity]/ single-task gait velocity) × 100. Cox proportional hazard models were used to estimate the association between risk of progression to dementia and the independent variables, adjusted for age, sex, education, comorbidities, and cognition.
Results: Among 112 study participants with MCI, mean (SD) age was 76.6 (6.9) years, 55 were women (49.1%), and 27 progressed to dementia (24.1%), with an incidence rate of 121 per 1000 person-years. Slow single-task gait velocity (
Conclusions and Relevance: Dual-task gait is associated with progression to dementia in patients with MCI. Dual-task gait testing is easy to administer and may be used by clinicians to decide further biomarker testing, preventive strategies, and follow-up planning in patients with MCI.
Trial Registration: clinicaltrials.gov: NCT03020381.
Notes
Gait and Brain Lab, Parkwood Institute and Lawson Health Research Institute, London, Ontario
First Published in JAMA Neurology
Montero-Odasso MM, Sarquis-Adamson Y, Speechley M, et al. Association of Dual-Task Gait With Incident Dementia in Mild Cognitive Impairment: Results From the Gait and Brain Study. JAMA Neurol.2017;74(7):857–865. doi:10.1001/jamaneurol.2017.0643