Comparison of single-and dual-task gait parameters of children with cancer and typically developing children

Abstract

Purpose: This study aimed to compare single- and dual-task gait parameters between children with cancer (CC) and typically developing children (TDC). Methods: The gait parameters (gait speed, cadence, and stride length) assessed by the 10-meter walking test under single- and dual-task conditions and dual-task cost (DTC) was calculated. The t-test, Mann-Whitney U, and Pearson chi-square tests were used for comparisons. Purpose: This study aimed to compare single- and dual-task gait parameters between children with cancer (CC) and typically developing children (TDC). Methods: The gait parameters (gait speed, cadence, and stride length) assessed by the 10-meter walking test under single- and dual-task conditions and dual-task cost (DTC) was calculated. The t-test, Mann-Whitney U, and Pearson chi-square tests were used for comparisons. Results: The comparative-descriptive study was conducted with 49 children (14 females and 35 males) with a mean age of 12.45±2.71. The study participants consisted of two groups: CC (7 girls, 13 boys) and TDC (7 girls, 22 boys). The CC group exhibited lower gait speed (p