Walking Adaptability after a Stroke and Its Assessment in Clinical Settings

Table 1

Domains of walking adaptability.

Domain*	Definition*
Obstacle negotiation^1	Negotiating obstacles in the environment to prevent a collision between the lower limb and the obstacle, such as stepping over an obstacle
Temporal	Time constraints imposed on walking, such as needing to walk fast to cross a street or slow in a crowded mall
Cognitive dual-tasking^2	Walking while attending to cognitive tasks, such as engaging in conversation while walking
Terrain demands	Walking on compliant or uneven surfaces that are not flat and firm, such as stairs, ramps, grass, and so forth
Ambient demands	Factors such as level of lighting, temperature, weather conditions, noise levels, and familiarity with surroundings
Postural transitions	Varying posture during walking, such as turning, bending down to pick an object while walking, and so forth
Motor dual-tasking^2	Walking while attending to additional motor tasks, such as holding a glass of water while walking, picking up an object from the floor, and so forth
Physical Load	Carrying or interacting with a weighted object while walking, such as carrying a loaded back-pack, walking to open a heavy door, and so forth
Maneuvering in traffic^1	Avoiding collision with static and dynamic objects by maneuvering the entire body, such as walking around other people, pets, vehicles, and so forth

Modified from Patla and Shumway-Cook’s conceptual framework defining dimensions of mobility [15].
¹Originally categorized as “traffic density” in Patla and Shumway-Cook’s dimensions of mobility.
²Originally categorized as “attentional demands” in Patla and Shumway-Cook’s dimensions of mobility.