Lower gait speed in older women with dementia compared with controls

Movement time is increased in patients with Alzheimer's disease. Objectives: To study differences in movement time and ability to increase speed in older women with dementia. Methods: Four tests were performed at self-selected and maximal speed: walking 2 x 15 m, walking between parallel lines, ' get up and go' ( GUG) and rising from lying supine. Twenty- two patients and 22 controls ( mean ages 81 and 86 years, respectively) were included in the study. Results: In the groups over 80 years, walking and GUG at both speeds and rising from lying supine from the left at self- selected speed were significantly slower among patients ( 20 - 30%). Both patients and controls were able to increase movement speed when changing from self- selected to maximal speed ( 13 - 27%). Patients with Alzheimer's disease had lower self- selected walking speed compared with patients with other types of dementia ( p = 0.048). Conclusion: Testing physical performance in two different speeds was feasible in patients with dementia. Patients had slower gait speed and were slower in the functional tests, such as GUG, but the capacity to increase speed seemed intact. Copyright (C) 2005 S. Karger AG, Basel.