ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: Gait disturbance is the main factor contributing to a negative impact on quality of life in patients with Huntington’s disease (HD). Understanding gait features in patients with HD is essential for planning a successful gait strategy. The aim of this study was to investigate temporospatial gait parameters in patients with HD compared with healthy controls. METHODS: We investigated 7 patients with HD. Diagnosis was confirmed by genetic analysis, and patients were evaluated with the Unified Huntington’s Disease Rating Scale (UHDRS). Gait features were assessed with a gait analyzer. We compared the results of patients with HD to those of 7 age- and sex-matched normal controls. RESULTS: Step length and stride length were decreased and base of support was increased in the HD group compared to the control group. In addition, coefficients of variability for step and stride length were increased in the HD group. The HD group showed slower walking velocity, an increased stance/swing phase in the gait cycle and a decreased proportion of single support time compared to the control group. Cadence did not differ significantly between groups. Among the UHDRS subscores, total motor score and total behavior score were positively correlated with step length, and total behavior score was positively correlated with walking velocity in patients with HD. CONCLUSION: Increased variability in step and stride length, slower walking velocity, increased stance phase, and decreased swing phase and single support time with preserved cadence suggest that HD gait patterns are slow, ataxic and ineffective. This study suggests that quantitative gait analysis is needed to assess gait problems in HD.
Subject(s)
Humans , Diagnosis , Gait , Huntington Disease , Quality of Life , WalkingABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: We sought to identify whether the characteristics of long-term visit-to-visit blood pressure (BP) and heart rate (HR) are related to baseline cognitive profiles in, Parkinson’s disease (PD). METHODS: We selected drug-naïve PD patients who visited our hospital at least 10 times with a baseline assessment of the Seoul neuropsychological battery. BP and HR were measured at each visit, and the variability of the systolic BP/diastolic BP (DBP) and HR was derived from the parameters of serial 10 office visits. Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in PD patients was determined according to the proposed criteria with a cut-off value of z-score ≤ -2. RESULTS: Forty-seven patients with PD (mean follow-up duration = 22.3 months) were enrolled in the study. Compared with non-MCI PD patients, MCI PD patients revealed a significant increase in HR and/or variability in DBP. CONCLUSION: This exploratory study showed that baseline cognition in drug-naïve PD patients might be related to the visit-to-visit variability of DBP and/or HR.