Gait parameters as useful proxies in the early stage of Alzheimer’s disease: a Voxel Based Morphometry study (P4.095)

Objective: The goal of this study was to investigate differences in gait parameters (average gait speed, cadence, stride length) and their association with grey matter volumes between healthy older people and patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Background: Recent evidence shows that gait abnormalities, as well as cognitive decline, can be found early in the course of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Previous studies suggested that motor slowing (low walking speed) precedes cognitive decline in healthy older adults. To our knowledge, only few studies have explored the neuroanatomical substrate of Gait abnormalities. Design/Methods: Forty-three MCI patients and forty-three healthy controls were included in this study. All participants were assessed with a neuropsychological battery and 3D structural MRI. Quantitative gait measurements were collected from all participants walking a fixed distance (10 m) along a delimited indoor walkway. A standard VBM procedure was used to calculate tissue-class volumetric maps. Multiple-regression analyses were carried out to identify brain regions in which grey-matter (GM) volume was significantly associated with gait parameters. Additionally, age, education and Total Intracranial Volume (TIV) were included in the models as nuisance regressors. Results: The MCI group shows a strong pattern of correlation between gait parameters (average gait speed and stride length) and temporal areas (e.g. superior temporal gyrus, parahippocampal gyrus), mainly affected by neurodegeneration. The control group shows a significant positive association between average gait speed, cadence, stride length and GM volumes in frontal areas (e.g. middle gyrus, superior gyrus) and cerebellar areas, usually involved in gait control. Conclusions: This study shows that MCI patients present a distinct association between gait parameters and grey matter loss in mediotemporal structures. These results highlight a relationship between dementia-related pathology and gait dysfunction. Measures of gait can be useful proxies of cognitive decline in the early stage of neurodegeneration of the Alzheimer type. Study Supported by: This study was supported by the European Union Seventh Framework Program (FP7/2013–2017), VPH-DARE@IT to Professor A. Venneri. Disclosure: Dr. Mitolo has nothing to disclose. Dr. Della Pieta has nothing to disclose. Dr. Cosentino has nothing to disclose. Dr. Meneghello has nothing to disclose. Dr. Levedianos has nothing to disclose. Dr. Iaia has nothing to disclose. Dr. Venneri has received personal compensation for activities with Novartis Pharma AG as a speaker. Dr. Venneri has received research support from Khymeia Group.