The effect of single and dual task on spatiotemporal gait parameters in children with spastic cerebral palsy

Abstract

Abstract Aim: Children can walk in clinical settings but have difficulty walking in schools, parks, and outdoor activity playgrounds. Most environmental distractors, namely noise from the background, and diverting visual and aural stimuli may be a source of this lack of carryover from indoor to outside settings, which is why they are unable to carry-out their activities of daily living successfully and precisely. This study was aimed to assess the impact of dual task activities on spatiotemporal aspects of gait in children with spastic cerebral palsy (CP). Materials and Methods: After screening and informed consent, participants were asked to walk on a 10-m walkway while performing a dual task (walking with visual, auditory recognition, and backward counting). Three trials of each task were obtained and spatiotemporal parameters, including speed, step length, step width, and stride length, cadence) were measured. Result: Spatiotemporal parameters, such as speed, step width, step length, right stride length, and cadence, showed significant difference with dual-task walking compared with normal walking. Conclusion: The results suggest that dual-task training should receive more attention in clinical evaluations, as well as therapy strategies for children with spastic CP.