https://doi.org/10.4081/ar.2011.e5

Role of motor skills and visual demand for age-related deficits in dual-task walking

Vol. 2 No. 1 (2011)
Submitted: 31 December 2010
Accepted: 3 June 2011
Published: 8 June 2011
aging, locomotion, attention, executive functions, fall prevention
Abstract Views: 3068
PDF: 1596
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Authors

Rainer Beurskens
r.beurskens@dshs-koeln.de
Otmar Bock
Previous studies suggested that age-related deficits of walking are accentuated under dual-task conditions when the non-walking task is visually demanding. Here we evaluate whether a requirement for manual skills is critical as well. Young (22±2 years) and older (69±3 years) subjects walked along a straight path while performing a task that required manual skills but no visual processing, i.e., checking off boxes on a handheld panel without seeing the arm, or a task that required visual processing but no manual skill , i.e., a Stroop-like task with verbal responses. We found that the checking task affected the performance of young and elderly subjects to a similar degree, while the Stroop-like task affected seniors’ performance more than that of young subjects. This outcome confirms the role of visual demand for age-related deficits of dual-task walking (in the Stroop-like task), but doesn’t support a similar role for manual skills (in the checking task).

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Supporting Agencies

This study was conducted without external funding.

How to Cite

Beurskens, R., & Bock, O. (2011). Role of motor skills and visual demand for age-related deficits in dual-task walking. Ageing Research, 2(1), e5. https://doi.org/10.4081/ar.2011.e5

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