Attentional Focus Instructions and Conscious Movement Processing in Older Adults

February 27, 2024 updated by: The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

The Effects of Attentional Focus Instructions on Real-time Conscious Movement Processing While Walking in a Challenging Environment for Older Adults at Risk of Falling in Hong Kong: Implications for Rehabilitation

This study aims to provide a novel scientific contribution through addressing critical knowledge gaps, examining the effects of attentional focus instructions on real-time (state) conscious movement processing propensity, gait parameters, and muscle efficiency in older adults in Hong Kong at risk of falling while walking in a challenging environment. The study results could update our scientific understanding of the mechanisms of conscious movement processing and the interventional effects of attentional focus instructions in older adults. It could ultimately enhance the methodology used for developing the most appropriate psychomotor gait re-education intervention in rehabilitation and provide clear guidelines on the exact attentional focus training that older adults require. Further, it could mitigate the effect of conscious movement processing and risk of falling in older adults.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Active, not recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Observational

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
106

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Locations

  • China
      • Hong Kong, China
        • The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

65 years to 99 years (Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Older adults (N = 106) will be recruited from different collaborating community elderly and rehabilitation centres in Hong Kong through convenience sampling. Potential participants will be screened for eligibility by the inclusion and exclusion criteria.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • age 65 or above;
  • able to walk independently indoor for at least 20 metres without a walking aid.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • a total score of less than 24 on the MMSE-C (Chiu et al., 1994; Folstein et al., 1975);
  • the presence of any untreated cerebral vascular disease, Parkinson's disease, or any other major neurological deficit;
  • the presence of an unstable medical condition affecting safety while walking ;
  • a history of a major fall incident within the last year;
  • a static visual acuity poorer than 20/40 vision (assessed using the Tumbling E eye chart).

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Observational Models: Cohort
  • Time Perspectives: Cross-Sectional

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort

Group / Cohort

A group or subgroup of participants in an observational study that is assessed for biomedical or health outcomes.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
high reinvestor group (HRG)
The participants were divided into two groups, the high reinvestor group (HRG) and the low reinvestor group (LRG), using the conventional median split of their scores on the MSRS-C (Chu & Wong, 2019; Mak et al., 2020).
Other: Walking trials

All participants will complete a series of walking trials. They will first be requested to perform three practice walks followed by three walking trials on a 7.4m straight level-ground firm walkway (GW) and the other three walking trials on a 7.4m straight foam walkway (FW) in a randomised order. The dimension of the foam walkway in the FW will be 8m (length), 0.8m (width), and 0.3m (height). The starting and finishing lines of the FW will be positioned at 0.3m from each side of the FW's edges. Thus, the lengths of the FW and the GW will be identical (i.e., 7.4m). Participants will be asked to walk 7.4m and stop for each walking trial.

After a 10-minute rest break, participants will perform nine walking trials on the GW and the other nine walking trials on the FW, including three repetitions of three different attentional focus instructions (external focus [EF], internal focus [IF], and no specific focus [NF]) in the GW and FW in a randomised order.
low reinvestor group (LRG)
The participants were divided into two groups, the high reinvestor group (HRG) and the low reinvestor group (LRG), using the conventional median split of their scores on the MSRS-C (Chu & Wong, 2019; Mak et al., 2020).
Other: Walking trials

All participants will complete a series of walking trials. They will first be requested to perform three practice walks followed by three walking trials on a 7.4m straight level-ground firm walkway (GW) and the other three walking trials on a 7.4m straight foam walkway (FW) in a randomised order. The dimension of the foam walkway in the FW will be 8m (length), 0.8m (width), and 0.3m (height). The starting and finishing lines of the FW will be positioned at 0.3m from each side of the FW's edges. Thus, the lengths of the FW and the GW will be identical (i.e., 7.4m). Participants will be asked to walk 7.4m and stop for each walking trial.

After a 10-minute rest break, participants will perform nine walking trials on the GW and the other nine walking trials on the FW, including three repetitions of three different attentional focus instructions (external focus [EF], internal focus [IF], and no specific focus [NF]) in the GW and FW in a randomised order.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Muscle efficiency
Time Frame: Day 0
It will be measured by the surface electromyography (EMG).
Day 0
Real-time (state) conscious movement processing propensity
Time Frame: Day 0
It will be measured by the Alpha2 EEG T3-Fz coherence.
Day 0
Gait speed
Time Frame: Day 0
It will be measured by the 3-D motion-capture system in the unit of meter per second (m/s).
Day 0
Body sway
Time Frame: Day 0
It will be measured by the 3-D motion-capture system in the unit of millimeter (mm).
Day 0
Stride length
Time Frame: Day 0
It will be measured by the 3-D motion-capture system in the unit of meter (m).
Day 0
Stride-to-stride variability
Time Frame: Day 0
It will be measured by the 3-D motion-capture system by the coefficients of variation (CV).
Day 0

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Balance ability
Time Frame: Day 0
It will be measured by the Berg Balance Scale. The minimum value of the scale is 0 and the maximum value is 56. Higher score represents better balance ability.
Day 0
Walking ability
Time Frame: Day 0
It will be measured by the Timed 'Up & Go' tests.
Day 0
Fear of falling
Time Frame: Day 0
It will be measured by the Chinese version of the Falls Efficacy Scale International. The minimum value of the scale is 16 and the maximum value is 64. Higher score represents higher fear of falling.
Day 0
Trait conscious movement processing propensity
Time Frame: Day 0
It will be measured by the Chinese version of the Movement-Specific Reinvestment Scale. The minimum value of the scale is 10 and the maximum value is 60. Higher score represents higher trait conscious movement processing propensity.
Day 0

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Thomson Wong, PhD, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
July 15, 2022

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
June 30, 2024

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
June 30, 2024

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
June 1, 2022

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
June 6, 2022

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
June 9, 2022

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
February 29, 2024

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
February 27, 2024

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
February 1, 2024

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 15601021

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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