Effectiveness of Dual Task Exercises on Community Ambulation in Hemiparetic Patients

Abstract

Background: Stroke is one of the major contributing factors for disability and handicap in adults. Hemiparetic stroke causes weakness of one side of the body and less severe than hemiplegia. Major problem following stroke is loss of walking ability, recovery of community ambulation is a priority goal for most patients. Various approaches in stroke rehabilitation have been studied to improve the walking ability of people with hemiparesis. The dual task is defined as simultaneous production of two tasks one "primary" and one "secondary", for which changes in performance are measured. Using dual-task paradigms as part of treatment may prove helpful in community ambulation, hence this study is to find out the effectiveness of dual task exercises on gait variables in subjects with hemiparesis. Method: Total of 30 subjects with Hemiparesis was taken by convenience sampling. All the subjects were explained about their condition & mode of assessment and written informed consent was obtained from them and divided into 2 groups. The experimental group was scheduled to attend dual task exercises thrice in a week for four weeks. The control group were scheduled to attend supervised conventional therapy sessions weekly thrice for four weeks. Gait assessment was done by using foot print method. The outcome measures of the study were velocity, cadence, step length, stride length. Results: Statistical Analysis were performed with SPSS version 16.0 package. On observing the means of post test parameters of experimental group A and control group B Independent t-test was done and the P- value is <0.05. There is a statistically significant difference in all gait parameters. Conclusion: This study concludes that dual task exercises can be considered as effective treatment method for motivated patients with hemiparesis to improve the walking ability and community ambulation. Keywords: Stroke, Hemiparesis, Dual Task, Gait, Foot Print Method.