OBJECTIVE: To examine the internal characteristics of older adults independent in community ambulation to gain further understanding of the skills required for its successful execution. DESIGN: Exploratory factor analysis. SETTING: General community. PARTICIPANTS: Healthy, community dwelling older adults (N=113) who were cognitively intact and walked outdoors independently. INTERVENTIONS: Not applicable. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Spatiotemporal gait parameters derived from accelerometry over 6 minutes walking outdoors and a battery of measures for motor, cognitive, executive, and behavioral characteristics. RESULTS: Mean participant age +/- SD was 75.8+/-7.3 years, with almost a third of the sample over 80 years. Four factors emerged from the Factor Analysis of 23 variables: motor control, self-efficacy, executive function, and cognitive-motor interference, which together explained 61.4% of common variance. Eight variables loaded onto motor control, accounting for 34.5% of common variance; 7 items loaded onto self-efficacy, which explained 12.4% of common variance; 5 variables loaded onto executive function, accounting for 8.4% of common variance; and 3 variables loaded onto cognitive-motor interference, explaining 6% of the variance. CONCLUSIONS: Results of this study indicate that factors beyond motor control contribute to independent community ambulation in older adults, reflecting the multidimensional, complex nature of the task. Self-efficacy was shown to be more relevant than executive function to gait performance, suggesting the need for a broader approach to assessment and intervention strategies. Copyright 2010 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
OBJECTIVE: To examine the internal characteristics of older adults independent in community ambulation to gain further understanding of the skills required for its successful execution. DESIGN: Exploratory factor analysis. SETTING: General community. PARTICIPANTS: Healthy, community dwelling older adults (N=113) who were cognitively intact and walked outdoors independently. INTERVENTIONS: Not applicable. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Spatiotemporal gait parameters derived from accelerometry over 6 minutes walking outdoors and a battery of measures for motor, cognitive, executive, and behavioral characteristics. RESULTS: Mean participant age +/- SD was 75.8+/-7.3 years, with almost a third of the sample over 80 years. Four factors emerged from the Factor Analysis of 23 variables: motor control, self-efficacy, executive function, and cognitive-motor interference, which together explained 61.4% of common variance. Eight variables loaded onto motor control, accounting for 34.5% of common variance; 7 items loaded onto self-efficacy, which explained 12.4% of common variance; 5 variables loaded onto executive function, accounting for 8.4% of common variance; and 3 variables loaded onto cognitive-motor interference, explaining 6% of the variance. CONCLUSIONS: Results of this study indicate that factors beyond motor control contribute to independent community ambulation in older adults, reflecting the multidimensional, complex nature of the task. Self-efficacy was shown to be more relevant than executive function to gait performance, suggesting the need for a broader approach to assessment and intervention strategies. Copyright 2010 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Authors: Sudeshna A Chatterjee; Janis J Daly; Eric C Porges; Emily J Fox; Dorian K Rose; Theresa E McGuirk; Dana M Otzel; Katie A Butera; David J Clark Journal: J Neurol Phys Ther Date: 2018-10 Impact factor: 3.649
Authors: Nancy A Gallagher; Philippa J Clarke; David L Ronis; Carol Loveland Cherry; Linda Nyquist; Kimberlee A Gretebeck Journal: Res Gerontol Nurs Date: 2012-09-17 Impact factor: 1.571
Authors: David J Clark; Sudeshna A Chatterjee; Theresa E McGuirk; Eric C Porges; Emily J Fox; Chitralakshmi K Balasubramanian Journal: Gait Posture Date: 2017-12-01 Impact factor: 2.840