A influência da gestação nos parâmetros da marcha durante uma atividade de dupla tarefa

Abstract

The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the potential influences of different gestational periods on the spatiotemporal parameters during a dual-task activity. This study included the gestational group (GG) comprised 20 pregnant women and the control group (CG) consisted of 20 healthy, non-pregnant women. The CG was evaluated at a single time point, whereas the GG was assessed during the second trimester and the third trimester of gestation. Participants performed a verbal fluency cognitive task followed by a walking assessment. Subsequently, participants completed a dual-task activity, which involved performing the walking task simultaneously with the verbal fluency cognitive task. To assess differences in spatiotemporal gait variables between groups, regardless of the type of task performed, a two-factor ANOVA (group and task) was used. The only variable that exhibited statistically significant changes was cadence, which, regardless of the gestational trimester, was significantly reduced (Sig = 0.024, small effect size) during the dual-task activity. Although previous studies have demonstrated cognitive changes during pregnancy, adding a cognitive task to walking did not significantly influence most of the parameters analyzed. These findings indicate that pregnant women demonstrate a strong ability to perform walking effectively during a dual-task activity. [resumo fornecido pelo autor]