Category: Parkinson's Disease: Disease mechanisms
Objective: To examine midfrontal oscillations in people with Parkinson’s disease (PD) with freezing of gait (PDFOG+), without FOG (PDFOG–), and healthy controls during gait imagination (GI) and gait observation (GO) tasks.
Background: FOG is a debilitating symptom of PD, often worsening with disease progression. Gait impairments in PD involve complex neural mechanisms, with cognitive processes such as motor imagery and action observation playing a crucial role. These processes, integrated into rehabilitation strategies, may be disrupted in PD. Our previous findings showed abnormal midfrontal theta and beta oscillations in PDFOG+, but the electrophysiological basis of GI and GO tasks in PDFOG+ and PDFOG– remains unclear.
Method: Scalp EEG was recorded from PDFOG+ (n=21), PDFOG– (n=16), and healthy controls (HC, n=21) during GI and GO tasks. A subset of PDFOG+ (n=13) also performed slower versions of these tasks. Resting-state EEG (eyes-closed and eyes-open) was also collected.
Results: Significant differences in midfrontal and other cortical oscillations were observed across all groups during GI and GO tasks. PD subgroups showed increased theta power than HC during GI, with PDFOG+ exhibiting increased delta power. However, in GI-slow, PDFOG+ showed reduced delta power compared to GI-normal. PDFOG+ also displayed decreased alpha and beta power but increased gamma power than PDFOG– and HC. Additionally, PDFOG+ had decreased delta and theta power during GO-slow compared to GO-normal.
Conclusion: These findings highlight distinct oscillatory disruptions in PDFOG+, particularly in lower- and higher-frequency bands, during gait-related cognitive tasks. Understanding these oscillatory patterns may provide insights into targeted neurorehabilitation strategies to improve gait function and mitigate FOG in PD.
To cite this abstract in AMA style:
A. Singh, M. Leedom. Gait Imagination and Gait Observation Related Midfrontal Oscillations in People With Parkinson’s Disease and Freezing of Gait [abstract]. Mov Disord. 2025; 40 (suppl 1). https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/gait-imagination-and-gait-observation-related-midfrontal-oscillations-in-people-with-parkinsons-disease-and-freezing-of-gait/. Accessed October 5, 2025.« Back to 2025 International Congress
MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/gait-imagination-and-gait-observation-related-midfrontal-oscillations-in-people-with-parkinsons-disease-and-freezing-of-gait/