Measurement of attention during movement: Acquisition of ambulatory EEG and cognitive performance from healthy young adults

Non-invasive methods of recording human electro-cortical brain dynamics during normal daily activities would have far-reaching clinical benefits. The literature suggests a strong link between gait and cognition, where attention is seen to play a central role. This study investigated if clinically useful electrophysiological measures of attention can be collected using an auditory oddball task in ecological/non-clinic environments through analysis of the amplitude and latency of auditory P3 event related potentials (ERPs). Electrophysiological (EEG, EOG, EMG) recordings were taken for 7 healthy subjects while presented with an auditory oddball task. Data was recorded in control, static (seated) and dynamic (fixed cycling) experimental conditions. Recordings were also taken for two subjects during treadmill walking. P3 ERPs were calculated and data analysis showed that peak amplitude and component latency remained stable across all experimental conditions. For the Cz electrode position there were 0.2-2% P3 amplitude and 3-9% P3 latency differences. P3 amplitude and latency also remained stable between experimental conditions for all electrode locations. This result opens up the possibility to quantitatively investigate the interaction between gait and attention during the ageing process but also in movement disorders such as freezing of gait in Parkinson´s disease.