Children With Idiopathic Toe Walking Display Different Cortical Activation Patterns When Interpreting Tactile Sensation

Idiopathic toe walking (ITW) is a diagnosis given to children who walk with an absence of heel strike in the contact phase of the gait cycle, who are otherwise typically developing. This study aimed to determine if children with ITW had cortical activation differences when completing a tactile sensation test compared to typically developing children. The study included 15 typically developing children and 15 children with ITW. Participants were required to perform a two-point discrimination test during an fMRI using a standard block design.Four clusters were identified, where the controls exhibited significantly greater activation than the ITW group during the tactile test. The largest cluster peaked in the right inferior frontal gyrus. A second cluster was centered in the right middle frontal gyrus. The third cluster peaked in the right inferior parietal lobule. Lastly, a smaller cluster was identified in the right precuneus.The results indicate that the control group exhibited greater activation than the ITW group in key brain regions involved in executive function, motor planning, and sensory integration. These findings support the notion that ITW is linked to functional differences in neural networks related to motor control and sensory integration.