Effects of walking on bilateral differences in spatial attention control: a cross-over design

Soichiro Koyama,Yoshikiyo Kanada,Yuichi Hirakawa,Hiroaki Sakurai,Shigeo Tanabe

doi:10.1186/s40945-015-0012-y

Soichiro Koyama, Yoshikiyo Kanada + Show 3 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1186/s40945-015-0012-y

Copy DOI

Abstract

BackgroundWalking requires a high attentional cost for balance control and interferes with the control of attention. However, it is unclear whether the performance of visual spatial attention control, which is one of the functions of attention control, is also decreased during walking. In addition, although previous studies have shown right-hemispheric dominance and lower ability of left side visual spatial attention control during sitting, it remains unknown whether walking accentuates bilateral differences in visual spatial attention control. We tested the hypothesis that walking interferes with visual spatial attention control on both sides and accentuates its bilateral differences.MethodsTwenty healthy right-handed subjects (24.3 ± 2.0 years) participated in this study. Subjects performed a random stimulus–response compatibility (SRC) task during both sitting and walking situations. To evaluate the effects of walking, reaction time was measured on both sides for the two situations. In comparison to the both situations (sitting and walking), the amount of change of the SRC effect on both sides was used. In the comparing the bilateral difference (left and right), the difference of the SRC effect was evaluated in each situation. The paired t-test was applied to both comparisons for statistical analysis.ResultsThe SRC effect on both sides during walking was significantly larger than during sitting (P < 0.05). In addition, walking significantly accentuated the bilateral differences in visual spatial attention control (P < 0.05).ConclusionsThese results suggest that walking affects the performance of visual spatial attention control on both sides and accentuates its bilateral differences. These results have implications for development of practice methods of gait disorder with higher brain dysfunction.

Highlights

Walking requires a high attentional cost for balance control and interferes with the control of attention
The right-hemispheric cortex controls visual spatial attention control in both visual hemifields, whereas the left-hemispheric cortex attends to the right visual hemifield only [12]
Using the stimulus–response compatibility (SRC) task, the present study tested the hypothesis that walking decreases the performance of visual spatial attention control and accentuates the bilateral difference between the visual fields

Summary

Introduction

Walking requires a high attentional cost for balance control and interferes with the control of attention. The simultaneous execution of an attention task (e.g., digit span task, Stroop task, and selective reaction time task) causes a decline in performance in various populations including healthy young adults, older adults, and patients with neurologic disease [3,4,5,6,7,8]. It is unclear whether the performance of visual spatial attention control, which is one of the functions of attention control, is decreased during walking. Bilateral differences in visual spatial attention control have been demonstrated during sitting [16], the effects of walking on these differences have not been shown

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion