Dual-Task Performance in Older Adults With and Without Idiopathic Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus

Otto Lilja-Lund; Lars Nyberg; Martin Maripuu; Katarina Laurell

doi:10.3389/fnagi.2022.904194

Dual-Task Performance in Older Adults With and Without Idiopathic Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus

Front Aging Neurosci. 2022 May 30:14:904194. doi: 10.3389/fnagi.2022.904194. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Otto Lilja-Lund¹, Lars Nyberg^{2

3

4

5}, Martin Maripuu⁶, Katarina Laurell⁷

Affiliations

¹ Department of Clinical Sciences, Neuroscience, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden.
² Department of Radiation Sciences, Radiology, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden.
³ Department of Integrative Medical Biology, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden.
⁴ Umeå Center for Functional Brain Imaging, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden.
⁵ Center for Lifespan Changes in Brain and Cognition, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
⁶ Department of Clinical Sciences, Psychiatry, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden.
⁷ Department of Medical Sciences, Neurology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden.

Abstract

Two of the main features of idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus (iNPH) are disturbed gait and cognition. These features are typically investigated separately, but here we combined walking with a cognitive task to investigate if older adults with iNPH were more susceptible to dual-task interference on walking than those without iNPH. In total, 95 individuals from the general population participated in our study. Of these, 20 were classified as Possible iNPH (median [interquartile range, IQR] 80 years [75-82.5]) and 75 as Unlikely iNPH (74 years [72-78]). Conversation, 10-m walking, semantic and phonemic verbal fluency were performed either combined or independently. "Stopping walking while talking" was noted. Pairwise comparisons and multiple logistic regression analyses were used. We found that the Possible iNPH group was older, stopped walking more frequently during the conversation, and had a slower single-task pace. The dual-task pace was slower for both groups. Only single-task walking pace could predict Possible iNPH when adjusted for age. We could establish a dual-task cost on gait performance in this sample of older adults from the general population, but the cost was not exclusive for individuals with Possible iNPH. To further assess the value of dual-task testing in iNPH, including observations of stopping walking while talking, a study of a clinical iNPH material with more severe symptoms would be valuable.

Keywords: ageing; cognition; dual-task; idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus; neuropsychology; older adults.