@article{ref1,
title="The Impact of Depression on Dual Tasking Among Patients With High Fall Risk",
journal="Journal of geriatric psychiatry and neurology",
year="2011",
author="Wright, Sara L. and Kay, Rachel E. and Avery, Erich T. and Giordani, Bruno and Alexander, Neil B.",
volume="24",
number="3",
pages="142-150",
abstract="Depression predicts fall risk among older adults, and this relationship may be partially explained by depression-associated executive dysfunction, relevant to navigating demanding environments. This pilot study examined timed stepping accuracy under simple and complex dual-task conditions, using an instrumented walkway based on the Trail Making Test. Participants were balance-impaired older adults, either with (n = 8; major depressive disorder [MDD]) or without (n = 8; nondepressed [ND]) MDD. After accounting for comfortable gait speed and age, the MDD group was significantly slower than the ND group on the walkway with the highest cognitive demand and demonstrated greater dual-task cost, both of which were correlated with performance on traditional measures of executive functioning. No group differences were observed on the walkway with the least cognitive demand. Balance-impaired older adults with MDD demonstrate increased stepping accuracy time under cognitively demanding conditions, reflecting executive dysfunction and an additional contribution to increased fall risk.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0891-9887",
doi="10.1177/0891988711409408",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0891988711409408"
}