Recent advances in functional neuroimaging of gait

Abstract

In this review, we discuss the contribution of functional neuroimaging to the understanding of the cerebral control of gait in humans, both in healthy subjects and in patients with Parkinson's disease. We illustrate different approaches that have been used to address this issue, ranging from the imaging of actual gait performance to the study of initiation and imagery of gait. We also consider related approaches focused on specific aspects of gait, like those addressed by repetitive foot movements. We provide a critical discussion of advantages and disadvantages of each approach, emphasizing crucial issues to be addressed for a better understanding of the neural control of human gait.

Fig. 1

a) Examples of photographs of broad (left) or narrow (right) walking trajectories presented to the subjects during the motor imagery (MI) experiment. b) Statistical parametric map (p<0.05 family wise error (FWE) corrected for multiple comparisons) showing increased cerebral activity bilaterally in the superior parietal lobule and in the right superior middle occipital gyrus during MI along a narrow path (compared to MI along a broad path), superimposed on a rendered brain viewed from the top. c) Beta weights (mean ± sem) of the left superior parietal lobule (−16, −50, 64) for the broad and narrow path, separate for motor imagery and visual imagery (VI)