Obstacle Negotiation in Older People With and Without Vision Impairment

Indiana University

Status: Enrolling

Conditions: Low Vision

Treatments: Other: Obstacle characteristics

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT05888441

16447

Details and patient eligibility

About

Falls are common among people with vision impairment and can lead to devastating health consequences. Understanding the functions of vision and how the visual characteristics of obstacles in the walking path impact the gait of people with vision impairment is necessary to create strategies to prevent falls in this population. The purpose of this study is to determine how adults with vision impairment change their gait behavior when stepping over obstacles that vary in height and contrast to the ground. We will then determine the mechanisms of gaze behavior that correlate to the gait behavior.

Enrollment: 200 estimated patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18+ years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Age 18 or over

• Able to walk independently

• Either have normal vision, or impaired vision.

  • Impaired vision is defined as binocular visual acuity of 20/25 or worse with or without a central scotoma; and/or binocular visual field that is restricted to an average of 100 degrees in diameter or less
  • Control subjects will have visual acuity of 20/40 or better.

Exclusion criteria

• Not cleared by a medical provider for moderate physical activity
• Self-report or have a history of: vestibular disorder or deafness
• Medical history of any condition that affects the ability to walk for up to 2 hours with breaks, such as feeling dizzy or faint, chest pain, palpitations, pain or numbness in the legs, shortness of breath,
• Cognitive limitations either by self-report or a score on the Mini Mental State Exam below 24 (out of 30)
• Walking or gait abnormalities, such as those caused from an injury, surgery, severe arthritis, or neurological condition such as Parkinson's disease
• Unable to walk without any walking aids such as a walker, cane, guide dog, or oxygen tank.
• Does not speak English

Trial design

Primary purpose: Basic Science

Allocation: Non-Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

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200 participants in 2 patient groups

Low Vision Group

Experimental group

Description:

At a single study visit, the group of low vision participants will be asked to perform a series of short walking trials. During each trial they will walk at a self-selected speed along a walkway (6 meters in length) that may or may not contain an obstacle to step over. The trials will be randomly varied with regard to an obstacle's presence, height, and contrast from the walkway surface. Repeated trials of each condition variation will be performed during the visit.

Treatment:

Other: Obstacle characteristics

Control Group

Active Comparator group

Description:

At a single study visit, the group of age-matched participants without low vision will be asked to perform a series of short walking trials. During each trial they will walk at a self-selected speed along a walkway (6 meters in length) that may or may not contain an obstacle to step over. The trials will be randomly varied with regard to an obstacle's presence, height, and contrast from the walkway surface. Repeated trials of each condition variation will be performed during the visit.

Treatment:

Other: Obstacle characteristics