Advisor Information
Julie Boron
Location
Dr. C.C. and Mabel L. Criss Library
Presentation Type
Poster
Start Date
3-3-2017 10:45 AM
End Date
3-3-2017 12:00 PM
Abstract
Falls are the leading cause of fatal injuries in older adults aged 65+ with one in three adults falling each year. Cognitive processes are involved in gait, and thus, as cognitive changes are normative with age, this may impact fall risk in the elderly. Sixteen older adults aged 70.8±5.3 years took part in a dual-task (DT) study where they walked on a split-belt self-paced treadmill with and without a virtual reality (VR) setting while simultaneously performing a serial subtraction (SS) task. For SS, individuals were given a random 3-digit starting number and told to subtract by three from that number for one minute; this process occurred three times. Only correct substitutions were counted toward their total score. Previous literature showed that individuals will slow their gait to deal with a cognitive task, and our results supported this trend. Subjects tended to walk slower in both the VR and non-VR settings while dual-tasking compared with the walking-only control trial; walking while SS was significantly slower in the NVR session (p= .024) and more variable (p=.048). Initial analyses found no significant differences in correct scores between conditions, however, when grouping based on age there was a significant difference (p
Effects of Serial Subtractions on Elderly Gait Speed in a Virtual Reality Setting
Dr. C.C. and Mabel L. Criss Library
Falls are the leading cause of fatal injuries in older adults aged 65+ with one in three adults falling each year. Cognitive processes are involved in gait, and thus, as cognitive changes are normative with age, this may impact fall risk in the elderly. Sixteen older adults aged 70.8±5.3 years took part in a dual-task (DT) study where they walked on a split-belt self-paced treadmill with and without a virtual reality (VR) setting while simultaneously performing a serial subtraction (SS) task. For SS, individuals were given a random 3-digit starting number and told to subtract by three from that number for one minute; this process occurred three times. Only correct substitutions were counted toward their total score. Previous literature showed that individuals will slow their gait to deal with a cognitive task, and our results supported this trend. Subjects tended to walk slower in both the VR and non-VR settings while dual-tasking compared with the walking-only control trial; walking while SS was significantly slower in the NVR session (p= .024) and more variable (p=.048). Initial analyses found no significant differences in correct scores between conditions, however, when grouping based on age there was a significant difference (p