Elsevier

Gait & Posture

Volume 18, Issue 1, August 2003, Pages 29-34
Gait & Posture

Postural sway increases with attentional demands of concurrent cognitive task

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0966-6362(02)00138-8Get rights and content

Abstract

The purpose of the present project was to determine whether postural sway varied with the difficulty of a concurrent unrelated cognitive task. Participants stood on a compliant surface under four conditions of varied attentional demand. Information reduction tasks (digit reversal, digit classification, counting backward by 3s) were used to quantify the attentional demands of the cognitive activity. Results showed attentional demands of the cognitive task impacted postural sway, with the most difficult cognitive task having the greatest influence.

Section snippets

Participants

Twenty healthy adults (10 men and 10 women, aged 18–30 years) participated after providing informed consent. By self-report, none of the participants had any neurological or balance disorders.

Apparatus

An audiotape recording of pairs of single-digit random numbers was created to provide the stimuli for the cognitive tasks. Pairs of digits were recorded at a rate of 2 digits/s with a 2-s pause between pairs. Center of pressure (COP) data were collected using an AMTI Accusway System for Balance and

Results

For LCOP, ANOVA showed a main effect of cognitive task condition, F(3, 57)=8.09, P<0.001. See Fig. 1. Post hoc analysis showed LCOP was greater for the counting backwards condition than the other three experimental conditions (P<0.01).

ANOVAs on sway range yielded a main effect of cognitive task for AP range, F(3, 57)=9.84, P<0.001 and for ML range, F(3, 57)=3.03, P<0.05. Post hoc comparisons showed greater AP and ML range for the counting back by 3s task than for the other three cognitive

Discussion

The present project demonstrates the impact on postural sway of attentional demands of a concurrent cognitive task. Of note, this finding parallels previous research in which information reduction tasks were used to scale attentional demands. Specifically, information reduction influences short-term memory [18], bimanual coordination [19], and postural sway in a qualitatively similar manner. Collectively, the results of the present study and the findings of Pellecchia and Turvey [19] highlight

Acknowledgements

Preparation of this manuscript was supported by an award from The Patrick and Catherine Weldon Donaghue Medical Research Foundation. The author wishes to acknowledge the contributions to data collection made by A. Fisher, E. Gaffey, K. Greenwood, L. Paschkewitz, A. Rosano, K. Quinn, and A. Weiselfish.

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