Article

Impaired arm swing is a common motor symptom of Parkinson's disease (PD), and
correlates with other gait impairments and increased risk of falls. Studies
suggest that arm swing is not merely a passive consequence of trunk rotation
during walking, but an active component of gait. Thus, techniques to enhance arm
swing may improve gait characteristics. There is currently no portable device to
measure arm swing and deliver immediate cues for larger movement. Here we test
report pilot testing of such a device, ArmSense (patented), using a crossover
repeated-measures design. Twelve people with PD walked in a video-recorded gym
space at self-selected comfortable and fast speeds. After baseline, cues were
given either visually using taped targets on the floor to increase step length or
through vibrations at the wrist using ArmSense to increase arm swing amplitude.
Uncued walking then followed, to assess retention. Subjects successfully reached
cueing targets on >95% of steps. At a comfortable pace, step length increased
during both visual cueing and ArmSense cueing. However, we observed increased
medial-lateral trunk sway with visual cueing, possibly suggesting decreased gait
stability. In contrast, no statistically significant changes in trunk sway were
observed with ArmSense cues compared to baseline walking.
At a fast pace, changes
in gait parameters were less systematic. Even though ArmSense cues only specified
changes in arm swing amplitude, we observed changes in multiple gait parameters,
reflecting the active role arm swing plays in gait and suggesting a new
therapeutic path to improve mobility in people with PD.
CI - Copyright (c) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Langue : ANGLAIS