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Crisafulli O, Ravizzotti E, Mezzarobba S, Cosentino C, Bonassi G, Botta A, Abbruzzese G, Marchese R, Avanzino L, Pelosin E. A gait-based paradigm to investigate central body representation in cervical dystonia patients. Neurol Sci 2023; 44:1311-1318. [PMID: 36534193 DOI: 10.1007/s10072-022-06548-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2022] [Accepted: 12/05/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Cervical dystonia (CD) is a common adult-onset idiopathic form of dystonia characterized by an abnormal head posture caused by an excessive activity of the neck muscles. The position of the head is important to direct viewpoint in the rounding environment, and the body orientation, during gait, must be coherent with the subjective straight ahead (SSA). An alteration of the SSA, as in the case of CD patients, could affect gait when visual input is not available. The aim of this study was to probe the behavior of patients with CD during blindfolded walking, investigating the ability to walk straight ahead based only on somatosensory and vestibular information. METHODS In this observational cross-sectional study, patients with CD and healthy control subjects (HC) were compared. All participants were evaluated through a gait analysis during blindfolded walking on a GAITRite carpet, relying on their own sense of straightness. RESULTS Patients with CD showed lower values of path length (p < 0.001), a lower number of steps on the carpet (p < 0.001). A higher number of CD patients deviated during the task, walking out of the carpet, (p < 0.005) compared to HS. No relation was found between the dystonic side and the gait trajectory deviation. A significant correlation was found between pain symptom and gait performance. CONCLUSIONS CD patients showed dysfunctions in controlling dynamic body location during walking without visual afferences, while the dystonic side does not seem to be related to the lateral deviation of the trajectory. Our results would assume that a general proprioceptive impairment could lead to an improper body position awareness in patients with CD.
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Affiliation(s)
- O Crisafulli
- Department of Public Health, Experimental and Forensic Medicine, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
| | - E Ravizzotti
- Department of Neuroscience, Rehabilitation, Ophthalmology, Genetics and Maternal Child Health (DINOGMI), University of Genoa, Largo P. Daneo 3, 16132, Rehabilitation Genoa, Ophthalmology, Italy
| | - S Mezzarobba
- Department of Neuroscience, Rehabilitation, Ophthalmology, Genetics and Maternal Child Health (DINOGMI), University of Genoa, Largo P. Daneo 3, 16132, Rehabilitation Genoa, Ophthalmology, Italy
- IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genoa, Italy
| | - C Cosentino
- Department of Neuroscience, Rehabilitation, Ophthalmology, Genetics and Maternal Child Health (DINOGMI), University of Genoa, Largo P. Daneo 3, 16132, Rehabilitation Genoa, Ophthalmology, Italy
| | - G Bonassi
- S.C. Medicina Fisica e Riabilitazione Ospedaliera, Azienda Sanitaria Locale Chiavarese, 16043, Chiavari, Italy
| | - A Botta
- IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genoa, Italy
| | - G Abbruzzese
- Department of Neuroscience, Rehabilitation, Ophthalmology, Genetics and Maternal Child Health (DINOGMI), University of Genoa, Largo P. Daneo 3, 16132, Rehabilitation Genoa, Ophthalmology, Italy
| | - R Marchese
- IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genoa, Italy
| | - L Avanzino
- IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genoa, Italy
- Department of Experimental Medicine (DIMES), Section of Human Physiology, University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy
| | - E Pelosin
- Department of Neuroscience, Rehabilitation, Ophthalmology, Genetics and Maternal Child Health (DINOGMI), University of Genoa, Largo P. Daneo 3, 16132, Rehabilitation Genoa, Ophthalmology, Italy.
- IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genoa, Italy.
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