Design and validation of a multi-task, multi-context protocol for real-world gait simulation

• DOI: 10.1186/s12984-022-01116-1
• Publication Date: 2022-12-15T22:03:04Z
• Authors: Kirsty Scott; Tecla Bonci; Francesca Salis; Lisa Alcock; Ellen Buckley; Eran Gazit; Clint Hansen; Lars Schwickert; Kamiar Aminian; Stefano Bertuletti; Marco Caruso; Lorenzo Chiari; Basil Sharrack; Walter Maetzler; Clemens Becker; Jeffrey M. Hausdorff; Ioannis Vogiatzis; Philip Brown; Silvia Del Din; Björn Eskofier; Anisoara Paraschi...; Alison Keogh; Cameron Kirk; Felix Kluge; Encarna M. Micó-A...; Arne Mueller; Isabel Neatrour; Martijn Niessen; Luca Palmerini; Henrik Sillen; David Singleton; Martin Ullrich; Beatrix Vereijken; Marcel Froehlich; Gavin Brittain; Brian Caulfield; Sarah Koch; Anne-Elie Carsin; Judith Garcia-Aym...; Arne Kuederle; Alison Yarnall; Lynn Rochester; Andrea Cereatti; Claudia Mazzà
• Keywords: Fear of falling

Measuring mobility in daily life entails dealing with confounding factors arising from multiple sources, including pathological characteristics, patient specific walking strategies, environment/context, and purpose of the task. The primary aim this study is to propose validate a protocol for simulating real-world gait accounting all these within single set observations, while ensuring minimisation participant burden safety.The included eight motor tasks at varying speed, incline/steps, surface, path shape, cognitive demand, postures that may abruptly alter participants' strategy walking. It was deployed convenience sample 108 participants recruited six cohorts older healthy adults (HA) potentially altered due Parkinson's disease (PD), sclerosis (MS), proximal femoral fracture (PFF), chronic obstructive pulmonary (COPD) or congestive heart failure (CHF). A novelty introduced tiered approach increase difficulty both same task (e.g., by allowing use aids armrests) across tasks.The proved be safe feasible (all could complete it no adverse events were recorded) addition more complex allowed much greater spread speeds achieved compared standard straight trials. Furthermore, representation variety relevant aspects can therefore used validation monitoring devices real life.The measuring conditions suggests also detect changes to, example, onset progression disease, therapy.ISRCTN-12246987.