Do the dual-task "8-foot up and go" tests provide additional predictive value for early detection of cognitive decline in community-dwelling older women?

Background: The 8-Foot Up and Go (8UG) test is a widely used mobility assessment. Some dual-task mobility assessments have been developed to help detect cognitive decline.

Aims: This study developed a dual-task version of 8UG test to investigate the dual-task 8UG performance and to evaluate the ability of dual-task 8UG test in detecting cognitive decline.

Methods: A total of 101 eligible community-dwelling women aged 60-74 years were grouped into the mild cognitive impairment group (MCI, n = 49) and the non-cognitive impairment group (NCI, n = 52). The 8UG tests under single-task (ST), manual dual-task (MT), and cognitive dual-task (CT) conditions were performed respectively. The dual-task cost (DTC) and the correct response rate (CRR) were calculated to quantify the dual-task interference.

Results: Participants spent more time in performing the 8UG test under dual-task conditions. No differences were observed between NCI and MCI groups for 8UG parameters under ST and MT conditions (p > 0.05). When executing CT, significant differences were found in the number of correct answers and CRR (p < 0.05). CRR showed the strongest ability to predict MCI with a cut-off point of 0.50 (71.2% sensitivity and 61.2% specificity).

Discussion: Both manual and cognitive dual-task were found to interfere with the 8UG performance. CRR with cutoff point of 0.50 could be a potential predictor of MCI in community-dwelling older women.

Conclusions: The CRR of the cognitive dual-task 8UG test could be recommended as a potential predictor for the early detection of MCI in community-dwelling older women.