Gait Performance While Performing Cognitive Tasks Continuously in Concussed High School Athletes

Approximately 136,000 sports related concussions or mild traumatic brain injuries occur in the high school population annually. This study aims to further understand the initial deficits exhibited in the first 72 hours post injury. We hypothesized that the concussed individuals would walk with slower gait velocities and produce slower reaction times when compared to the control subjects during static and dynamic continuous Stroop testing. Motion data was collected using 29 reflective markers and a 10-camera motion analysis setup. The auditory Stroop task consisted of a computer that presented the word, high or low either in high or low pitch. The subject was then asked to declare which pitch the word was presented in, while ignoring the actual word announced. Each trial was present- ed in increments of four continuous presentations. For concussed subjects significant differences were detected in the gait velocity between level walking and walking while performing concurrent auditory Stroop tasks. This may be due to injury to a region of the brain that is susceptible to injury within 72 hours post concussion. We observed that tests that include divided attention and walking may give an indication of cognitive disturbances experienced post concussion. In the future this finding may be used to assist clinicians with the diagnosis of concussion.