Walking speed questionnaire used to estimate gait speed in older adults: Comparisons with testing protocols and diagnostic accuracy.

Background: Walking speed is an important clinical tool in the physical therapy examination of older adults, but not always feasible to measure. Clinicians may be limited by space, a client's functional limitations, or use of telehealth. The Walking Speed Questionnaire (WSQ) can be used to estimate walking speed, but the effects of testing protocols on the accuracy and diagnostic capability of the WSQ have not yet been investigated.

The impact of resistance training on body composition, muscle strength, and functional fitness in older women (45-80 years): A systematic review (2010-2020).

As women age, they typically experience a progressive decrease in skeletal muscle mass and strength, which can lead to a decline in functional fitness and quality of life. Resistance training (RT) has the potential to attenuate these losses. Although well established for men, evidence regarding the benefits of RT for women is sparse and inconsistent: prior reviews include too few studies with women and do not adequately examine the interactive or additive impacts of workload, modalities, and nutritional supplements on outcomes such as muscle mass (MM), body composition (BC), muscle strength (MS), and functional fitness (FF).

Acute Effects of Assisted Cycling Therapy on Post-Stroke Motor Function: A Pilot Study.

Background: Stroke is the most common cause of long-term disability in the United States (US). Assisted Cycling Therapy (ACT) at cadences of about 80 rpm has been associated with improvements in motor and clinical function in other clinical populations. The acute effects of ACT on motor function of persons with stroke have not been investigated.

The association between social participation and lower extremity muscle strength, balance, and gait speed in US adults.

Social participation is associated with healthy aging, and although associations have been reported between social participation and demographics, no published studies have examined a relationship between social participation and measures amenable to intervention. The purpose was to explore the association between self-reported social participation and lower extremity strength, balance, and gait speed. A cross-sectional analysis of US adults (n = 2291; n = 1,031 males; mean ± standard deviation age 63.

Balance and gait of adults with very mild Alzheimer disease.

Background And Purpose: Studies have shown that adults with Alzheimer disease (AD) have gait and balance deficits; however, the focus has been on those with mild to severe disease. The purpose of this study was to determine whether balance and gait deficits are present in those with very mild AD.

Methods: Thirteen adults (72.

Feasibility and efficacy of intensive cognitive training in early-stage Alzheimer's disease.

Cognitive training may be beneficial for individuals with Alzheimer's disease (AD); however, the effects are modest with little evidence of carryover. Prior studies included limited hours and low intensity of training. The purpose of this study was to test the feasibility and efficacy of many hours of intensive cognitive training with adults in the early stages of AD.

The role of patient demographics and clinical presentation in predicting discharge placement after inpatient stroke rehabilitation: analysis of a large, US data base.

Purpose: To determine whether functional ability at admission and demographics predict discharge placement after inpatient rehabilitation for older adults recovering from stroke.

Method: In this retrospective study, we examined records of 31,910 adults 65 years of age and older who were admitted for inpatient rehabilitation post-stroke. Binary logistic regression was used with the outcome of placement and potential predictors of the admission Functional Independence Measure (FIM) score, age, sex and marital status.

Diagnostic accuracy of fall risk assessment tools in people with diabetic peripheral neuropathy.

Background: Diabetic peripheral neuropathy affects nearly half of individuals with diabetes and leads to increased fall risk. Evidence addressing fall risk assessment for these individuals is lacking.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to identify which of 4 functional mobility fall risk assessment tools best discriminates, in people with diabetic peripheral neuropathy, between recurrent "fallers" and those who are not recurrent fallers.

Older adults with and without stroke reduce cadence to meet the demands of talking.

Purpose: Cognitive tasks performed while walking can be challenging for older adults, especially for those with stroke. Conversational speech requires attention and working memory. The purpose of this study was to examine how older adults with and without stroke meet the demands of walking while talking.

Dual-task demands of hand movements for adults with stroke: a pilot study.

Unlabelled: For adults with stroke, walking while performing a cognitive task can be challenging, resulting in slower walking, poorer cognitive performance, or decreased performance on both tasks. It is not known if dual-task deficits are also present for upper limb movements for adults with stroke.

Purpose: To determine if unilateral movements of the affected and less affected hand are compromised when walking or talking.

Single limb exercise: pilot study of physiological and functional responses to forced use of the hemiparetic lower extremity.

Purpose: Stroke-related deficits can impede both functional performance and walking tolerance. Individuals with hemiparesis rely on the stronger limb during exercise and functional tasks. The single limb exercise (SLE) intervention was a unique training protocol that focused only on the hemiparetic limb.

Current clinical practices in stroke rehabilitation: regional pilot survey.

This study was aimed at understanding the current physical and occupational therapy practices in stroke rehabilitation in the Midwest. The insights gained from this pilot study will be used in a future study aimed at understanding stroke rehabilitation practices across the nation. Researchers and clinicians in the field of stroke rehabilitation were interviewed, and past studies in the literature were analyzed.

Rate of isometric knee extension strength development and walking speed after stroke.

The relationship between lower-limb weakness and walking speed after stroke is not clear. This may be related to the measurement used to quantify weakness, typically peak strength. This study examined the relationship between two measures of isometric knee extension strength, i.

Influence of stroke-related impairments on performance in 6-minute walk test.

The 6-minute walk test is a clinical measure of endurance, but it is not known if it is useful for individuals with mobility impairments secondary to stroke. Purposes of this study were to assess which stroke-related physical impairments influence performance in the 6-minute walk test and to evaluate if this test provides a measure of functional walking endurance after stroke. Seventy-two adults poststroke completed the 6-minute walk as part of baseline testing for a randomized intervention clinical trial.

Task switching after stroke.

Background And Purpose: Task switching is a cognitive skill that may be compromised after brain damage. The purposes of this study were to examine task-switching abilities in the subacute phase after stroke, to determine whether a switching task under endogenous or internal control is more difficult than a switching task under exogenous or cued control, and to determine whether deficits in switching attenuate in the first few months after stroke.

Subjects: The participants in this study were 46 adults with stroke and 38 adults without stroke.

Access to polling places in the 2004 Presidential election: the experience of one metropolitan midwestern city.

According to federal law, polling places must be accessible to persons with disabilities. The rate of compliance with these laws, however, is not known. Our purpose was to determine whether polling places in the Greater Kansas City area were physically accessible to persons with disabilities.

Gains in distance walking in a 3-month follow-up poststroke: what changes?

Statement Of Problem: Distance walking remains compromised for many adults poststroke. The purpose of this study was to examine if the amelioration of stroke-related neuromuscular impairments, improved cardiovascular fitness, or better balance contributed to gains in distance walking.

Method Of Study: The authors gathered baseline data of 92 adults at an average of 75 days poststroke and again 3 months later.

Effects of practice and unpredictable distractors on planning and executing aiming after stroke.

The primary purpose of this study was to examine practice effects on the planning and execution of an aiming movement after right versus left stroke. A secondary purpose was to investigate the effects of a distractor that appeared randomly on motor performance after stroke. Right-hand dominant individuals, 15 with right stroke (right-sided brain damage), 16 with left stroke, and 30 without stroke, performed aiming movements to targets.

Ipsilateral deficits of targeted movements after stroke.

Objective: To test the hypotheses that targeted movements of both the ipsilateral and the contralateral extremities of stroke survivors would be prolonged compared with those from a control group without stroke, and that the ipsilateral deficit would occur in movements toward small, but not large, targets.

Design: Descriptive study.

Setting: Motor performance laboratory.

Attentional abilities and functional outcomes following stroke.

Although stroke affects cognitive functioning as well as motor functioning, research on cognitive consequences has lagged behind that focused on motor function. The evidence that is accruing suggests that cognitive function is importantly related to successful rehabilitation. The present study examined two aspects of attentional functioning (divided attention and switching attention) in older adult stroke survivors and healthy older adults.

Anticipatory postural adjustments and the latency of compensatory stepping reactions in humans.

A compensatory stepping response is a commonly used strategy in recovering balance control after a postural perturbation. Unlike gait initiation, the compensatory stepping often occurs without an anticipatory postural adjustment (APA), in which body weight is shifted to the swing leg first and then back to the stance leg prior to foot lifting. In postural perturbation studies using a moving platforms stepping responses without an APA were found to have shorter latency to foot lifting than trials with an APA.