Effects of Cognitive-Motor Interference on Cognitive Tasks Requiring Different Types of Concentration During Preferred and Fast Walking in Stroke Patients

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of three cognitive tasks on gait at a preferred walking speed, and at a fast speed, using dual-task methodology. A total of 29 stroke patients participated in the study. All 29 subjects performed 2 motor tasks (10-meter walk task and timed up and go task each at a preferred and a fast speed) and three cognitive tasks [Stroop, word list generation (WLG), serial subtraction (SS)] under dual-task conditions [cognitive-motor interference (CMI)] in a randomized order. Gait speeds were measured in six different conditions. A repeated-measure analysis of variance was employed to compare the results of the Stroop training, WLG, and SS tasks during preferred and fast walking. A Bonferroni adjustment use for post hoc analysis. The level of statistical significance was set at α=.05. A CMI effect occurred for performance of a 10-meter walking task at two different speed and a cognitive task (p<.05). Stroop had a significantly greater effect than SS and WLG (p<.05). The timed up and go task was affected when performed with fast walking speed during Stroop cognitive task (p<.05), but was not affected if performed with preferred walking speed during a cognitive task (p>.05). This study showed that CMI of Stroop can be used as a rehabilitation program for stroke patients.