The immediate effect of attentional, auditory, and a combined cue strategy on gait during single and dual tasks in Parkinson’s disease.

Baker K, Rochester L, Nieuwboer A

The aim of the study was to compare the effect of rhythmic auditory and attentional cues, and a combination of both cues on gait, in people with Parkinson’s disease (PD) during single and dual tasks.
Fifteen participants with idiopathic PD and a comparison group of 12 healthy participants agreed to take part in the study.
Three cueing strategies were compared: a rhythmic auditory cue (walking in time to a metronome beat), an attentional strategy (asked to focus on taking big step), and a combination cue (asked to walk in time to a metronome beat while taking big steps).
The authors found that the attentional strategy and the combination of a rhythmic auditory cue with an attentional strategy were equally effective, and improved walking speed and step amplitude significantly during both single and dual tasks.

Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 2007, 88 (12), 1593-1600

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