Adjustable Parameters and the Effectiveness of Adjunct Robot-Assisted Gait Training in Individuals with Chronic Stroke.
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SUBMITTER: Chen SC
PROVIDER: S-EPMC9265951 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Project description:Background: The limitation to the use of ElectroMyoGraphy (sEMG) in rehabilitation services is in contrast with its potential diagnostic capacity for rational planning and monitoring of the rehabilitation treatments, especially the overground Robot-Assisted Gait Training (o-RAGT). Objective: To assess the barriers to the implementation of a sEMG-based assessment protocol in a clinical context for evaluating the effects of o-RAGT in subacute stroke patients. Methods: An observational study was conducted in a rehabilitation hospital. The primary outcome was the success rate of the implementation of the sEMG-based assessment. The number of dropouts and the motivations have been registered. A detailed report on difficulties in implementing the sEMG protocol has been edited for each patient. The educational level and the working status of the staff have been registered. Each member of staff completed a brief survey indicating their level of knowledge of sEMG, using a five-point Likert scale. Results: The sEMG protocol was carried out by a multidisciplinary team composed of Physical Therapists (PTs) and Biomedical Engineers (BEs). Indeed, the educational level and the expertise of the members of staff influenced the fulfillment of the implementation of the study. The PTs involved in the study did not receive any formal education on sEMG during their course of study. The low success rate (22.7%) of the protocol was caused by several factors which could be grouped in: patient-related barriers; cultural barriers; technical barriers; and administrative barriers. Conclusions: Since a series of barriers limited the use of sEMG in the clinical rehabilitative environment, concrete actions are needed for disseminating sEMG in rehabilitation services. The sEMG assessment should be included in health systems regulations and specific education should be part of the rehabilitation professionals' curriculum. Clinical Trial Registration: www.ClinicalTrials.gov, identifier: NCT03395717.
| S-EPMC7604287 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundTo investigate the effects of robot-assisted gait training (RAGT) on spasticity and pain in people with spinal cord injury (SCI). Material and methods. Four electronic databases (PubMed, Scopus, Medline, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials) were searched for studies published up to November 2019. Only human trials and of English language were included. The searched studies were reviewed and extracted independently by two authors. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and non-RCTs were pooled separately for analyses. Primary outcome measures included spasticity assessed by Ashworth scale (AS) or modified Ashworth scale (MAS) and pain assessed by VAS. Secondary outcome measures included lower extremity motor score (LEMS) and walking ability (i.e., 6-minute walk test, 10-meter walk test).ResultsA total of 225 studies were identified. Eighteen studies (7 RCTs and 11 non-RCTs) including 301 subjects met inclusion criteria. The outcome measure of spasticity significantly improved in favor of RAGT group in non-RCTs (AS: 95%CI = -0.202 to -0.068, p ? 0.001; MAS: 95%CI = -2.886 to -1.412, p ? 0.001). The results on pain did not show significant change after RAGT in either RCTs or non-RCTs. LEMS and walking ability significantly increased in favor of RAGT.ConclusionsRAGT can improve spasticity and walking ability in people with SCI. The probable reason for no significant change in pain after RAGT is floor effect. RAGT is beneficial for normalizing muscle tone and for improving lower extremity function in people with SCI without causing extra pain.
| S-EPMC7115057 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BACKGROUND:Robot-assisted ankle-foot-orthosis (AFO) can provide immediate powered ankle assistance in post-stroke gait training. Our research team has developed a novel lightweight portable robot-assisted AFO which is capable of detecting walking intentions using sensor feedback of wearer's gait pattern. This study aims to investigate the therapeutic effects of robot-assisted gait training with ankle dorsiflexion assistance. METHODS:This was a double-blinded randomized controlled trial. Nineteen chronic stroke patients with motor impairment at ankle participated in 20-session robot-assisted gait training for about five weeks, with 30-min over-ground walking and stair ambulation practices. Robot-assisted AFO either provided active powered ankle assistance during swing phase in Robotic Group (n?=?9), or torque impedance at ankle joint as passive AFO in Sham Group (n?=?10). Functional assessments were performed before and after the 20-session gait training with 3-month Follow-up. Primary outcome measure was gait independency assessed by Functional Ambulatory Category (FAC). Secondary outcome measures were clinical scores including Fugl-Meyer Assessment (FMA), Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS), Berg Balance Scale (BBS), Timed 10-Meter Walk Test (10MWT), Six-minute Walk Test (SMWT), supplemented by gait analysis. All outcome measures were performed in unassisted gait after patients had taken off the robot-assisted AFO. Repeated-measures analysis of covariance was conducted to test the group differences referenced to clinical scores before training. RESULTS:After 20-session robot-assisted gait training with ankle dorsiflexion assistance, the active ankle assistance in Robotic Group induced changes in gait pattern with improved gait independency (all patients FAC???5 post-training and 3-month follow-up), motor recovery, walking speed, and greater confidence in affected side loading response (vertical ground reaction force +?1.49 N/kg, peak braking force +?0.24 N/kg) with heel strike instead of flat foot touch-down at initial contact (foot tilting +?1.91°). Sham Group reported reduction in affected leg range of motion (ankle dorsiflexion -?2.36° and knee flexion -?8.48°) during swing. CONCLUSIONS:Robot-assisted gait training with ankle dorsiflexion assistance could improve gait independency and help stroke patients developing confidence in weight acceptance, but future development of robot-assisted AFO should consider more lightweight and custom-fit design. TRIAL REGISTRATION:ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02471248 . Registered 15 June 2015 retrospectively registered.
| S-EPMC6006663 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundWalking ability is a priority for many children with cerebral palsy (CP) and their parents when considering domains of importance regarding treatment interventions. Partial body-weight supported treadmill training has become an established therapeutic treatment approach to address this demand. Further, new robotic rehabilitation technologies have increasingly been implemented in the clinical setting to allow for longer training sessions with increased step repetitions while maintaining a consistent movement pattern. But the current evidence about its clinical effectiveness in pediatric rehabilitation is weak. The aim of this research project is therefore to investigate the effectiveness of robot-assisted gait training on improvements of functional gait parameters in children with cerebral palsy.Methods/designChildren aged 6 to 18 years with bilateral spastic cerebral palsy who are able to walk at least 14 m with or without walking aids will be recruited in two pediatric therapy centers in Switzerland. Within a pragmatic cross-over design with randomized treatment sequences, they perform 5 weeks of robot-assisted gait training (three times per week with a maximum of 45 min walking time each) or a 5-week period of standard treatment, which is individually customized to the needs of the child and usually consists of 1-2 sessions of physiotherapy per week and additional hippotherapy, circuit training as well as occupational therapy as necessary. Both interventions take place in an outpatient setting. The percentage score of the dimension E of the Gross Motor Function Measure-88 (GMFM-88) as primary outcome as well as the dimension D of the GMFM-88, 6-minute and 10-meter walking tests as secondary outcomes are assessed before and at the end of each intervention period. Additionally, a 5-week follow-up assessment is scheduled for the children who are assigned to the standard treatment first. Treatment effects, period effects as well as follow-up effects are analyzed with paired analyses and independent test statistics are used to assess carry-over effects.DiscussionAlthough robot-assisted gait training has become an established treatment option to address gait impairments, evidence for its effectiveness is vague. This pragmatic trial will provide important information on its effects under clinical outpatient conditions.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov: NCT00887848 . Registered 23 April 2009.
| S-EPMC5333417 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Proprioception has a crucial role in promoting or hindering motor learning. In particular, an intact position sense strongly correlates with the chances of recovery after stroke. A great majority of neurological patients present both motor dysfunctions and impairments in kinesthesia, but traditional robot and virtual reality training techniques focus either in recovering motor functions or in assessing proprioceptive deficits. An open challenge is to implement effective and reliable tests and training protocols for proprioception that go beyond the mere position sense evaluation and exploit the intrinsic bidirectionality of the kinesthetic sense, which refers to both sense of position and sense of movement. Modulated haptic interaction has a leading role in promoting sensorimotor integration, and it is a natural way to enhance volitional effort. Therefore, we designed a preliminary clinical study to test a new proprioception-based motor training technique for augmenting kinesthetic awareness via haptic feedback. The feedback was provided by a robotic manipulandum and the test involved seven chronic hemiparetic subjects over 3?weeks. The protocol included evaluation sessions that consisted of a psychometric estimate of the subject's kinesthetic sensation, and training sessions, in which the subject executed planar reaching movements in the absence of vision and under a minimally assistive haptic guidance made by sequences of graded force pulses. The bidirectional haptic interaction between the subject and the robot was optimally adapted to each participant in order to achieve a uniform task difficulty over the workspace. All the subjects consistently improved in the perceptual scores as a consequence of training. Moreover, they could minimize the level of haptic guidance in time. Results suggest that the proposed method is effective in enhancing kinesthetic acuity, but the level of impairment may affect the ability of subjects to retain their improvement in time.
| S-EPMC4283673 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BACKGROUND:Balance impairments are common in patients with infratentorial stroke. Although robot-assisted gait training (RAGT) exerts positive effects on balance among patients with stroke, it remains unclear whether such training is superior to conventional physical therapy (CPT). Therefore, we aimed to investigate the effects of RAGT combined with CPT and compared them with the effects of CPT only on balance and lower extremity function among survivors of infratentorial stroke. METHODS:This study was a single-blinded, randomized controlled trial with a crossover design conducted at a single rehabilitation hospital. Patients (n?=?19; 16 men, three women; mean age: 47.4?±?11.6?years) with infratentorial stroke were randomly allocated to either group A (4?weeks of RAGT+CPT, followed by 4?weeks of CPT+CPT) or group B (4?weeks of CPT+CPT followed by 4?weeks of RAGT+CPT). Changes in dynamic and static balance as indicated by Berg Balance Scale scores were regarded as the primary outcome measure. Outcome measures were evaluated for each participant at baseline and after each 4-week intervention period. RESULTS:No significant differences in outcome-related variables were observed between group A and B at baseline. In addition, no significant time-by-group interactions were observed for any variables, indicating that intervention order had no effect on lower extremity function or balance. Significantly greater improvements in secondary functional outcomes such as lower extremity Fugl-Meyer assessment (FMA-LE) and scale for the assessment and rating of ataxia (SARA) were observed following the RAGT+CPT intervention than following the CPT+CPT intervention. CONCLUSION:RAGT produces clinically significant improvements in balance and lower extremity function in individuals with infratentorial stroke. Thus, RAGT may be useful for patients with balance impairments secondary to other pathologies. TRIAL REGISTRATION:ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier NCT02680691. Registered 09 February 2016; retrospectively registered.
| S-EPMC6664752 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE:Progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) is a rare neurodegenerative disease clinically characterized by prominent axial extrapyramidal motor symptoms with frequent falls. Over the last years the introduction of robotic technologies to recover lower limb function has been greatly employed in the rehabilitative practice. This observational trial is aimed at investigating the changes in the main spatiotemporal following end-effector robot training in people with PSP. METHOD:Pilot observational trial. PARTICIPANTS:Five cognitively intact participants with PSP and gait disorders. INTERVENTIONS:Patients were submitted to a rehabilitative program of robot-assisted walking sessions for 45 min, 5 times a week for 4 weeks. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES:The spatiotemporal parameters at the beginning (T0) and at the end of treatment (T1) were recorded by a gait analysis laboratory. RESULTS:Robot training was feasible, acceptable and safe and all participants completed the prescribed training sessions. All patients showed an improvement in the gait spatiotemporal index (Mean velocity, Cadence, Step length, and Step width) (T0 vs. T1). CONCLUSIONS:Robot training is a feasible and safe form of rehabilitation for cognitively intact people with PSP. The lack of side effects and the positive results in the gait parameter index in all patients support the recommendation to extend the trials of this treatment. Further investigation regarding the effectiveness of robot training in time is necessary. TRIAL REGISTRATION:ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01668407.
| S-EPMC4029018 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Background and Objectives: Gait disorders represent one of the most disabling aspects in multiple sclerosis (MS) that strongly influence patient quality of life. The improvement of walking ability is a primary goal for rehabilitation treatment. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of robot-assisted gait training (RAGT) in association with physiotherapy treatment in patients affected by MS in comparison with ground conventional gait training. Study design: Randomized controlled crossover trial. Materials and Methods: Twenty-seven participants affected by MS with EDSS scores between 3.5 and 7 were enrolled, of whom seventeen completed the study. They received five training sessions per week over five weeks of conventional gait training with (experimental group) or without (control group) the inclusion of RAGT. The patients were prospectively evaluated before and after the first treatment session and, after the crossover phase, before and after the second treatment session. The evaluation was based on the 25-foot walk test (25FW, main outcome), 6 min walk test (6MWT), Tinetti Test, Modified Ashworth Scale, and modified Motricity Index for lower limbs. We also measured disability parameters using Functional Independence Measure and Quality of Life Index, and instrumental kinematic and gait parameters: knee extensor strength, double-time support, step length ratio; 17 patients reached the final evaluation. Results: Both groups significantly improved on gait parameters, motor abilities, and autonomy recovery in daily living activities with generally better results of RAGT over control treatment. In particular, the RAGT group improved more than control group in the 25FW (p = 0.004) and the 6MWT (p = 0.022). Conclusions: RAGT is a valid treatment option that in association with physiotherapy could induce positive effects in MS-correlated gait disorders. Our results showed greater effectiveness in recovering gait speed and resistance than conventional gait training.
| S-EPMC8306232 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Improvements in gait speed following various training paradigms applied to patients post-stroke does not always lead to changes in walking performance, defined as gains in daily stepping activity. We hypothesized that testing conditions, specifically the presence of an observer, influences patient behaviors and resultant outcomes may overestimate their true walking capacity. This potential Hawthorne effect on spatiotemporal and biomechanical measures of locomotor function in individuals post-stroke has not been assessed previously. Fifteen ambulatory individuals with chronic stroke wore instrumented insoles and performed two separate normal-pace walking assessments, including unobserved conditions during which participants were unattended and unaware of data collection, and observed conditions with an investigator present. Gait analysis was conducted outside of a laboratory setting using instrumented insoles equipped with a 3D accelerometer and pressure sensors which captured the spatiotemporal kinematics, vertical ground reaction forces and foot acceleration. Data were compared using paired comparisons, with subsequent correlation and stepwise regression analyses to explore potential associations between Hawthorne-induced changes in walking strategies, gait speed and locomotor performance (daily stepping). Except for cadence, other measures of spatiotemporal parameters and swing kinematics (acceleration) were not significantly different between observed vs unobserved conditions. However, analyses of ground reaction forces revealed significantly greater paretic limb loading (Δ1st peak = 1.5 ± 1.6 N/kg Δ2nd peak = 1.4 ± 1.8 N/kg; p < 0.01) and increases in weight bearing symmetry (11-24%, p < 0.01) during observed vs unobserved conditions. This potential Hawthorne effect was greater in those with slower walking speeds and shorter stride lengths but was not related to daily stepping. The present findings suggest that biomechanical parameters of walking function may be related to the presence of an observer and highlight the need to separately measure locomotor capacity (gait speed) and performance (daily stepping).
| S-EPMC8597205 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundWalking impairment represents a relevant symptom in patients with neurological diseases often compromising social participation. Currently, mixed methods studies on robot-assisted gait training (RAGT) in patients with rare neurological diseases are lacking. This study aimed to explore the feasibility, acceptability, goal attainment and preliminary effects of RAGT in patients with common and rare neurological diseases and understand the intervention context and process.MethodsA mixed-methods feasibility study was conducted at an Austrian rehabilitation centre. Twenty-eight inpatients after stroke in the subacute and chronic phases, with multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, spinal cord injury, spinocerebellar ataxia, acute/chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy and motor neuron disease were included. Patients received RAGT for 45 minutes, 4x/week, for 4 weeks. Baseline and post-intervention assessments included gait parameters, walking and balance, and questionnaires. Semi-structured observations were conducted twice during the intervention period and analysed using thematic analysis. Descriptive statistics within the respective disease groups and calculation of effect sizes for the total sample were performed. Triangulation was employed to develop a deeper understanding of the research topic.ResultsData from 26 patients (mean age 61.6 years [standard deviation 13.2]) were analysed. RAGT was highly accepted by patients and feasible, indicated by recruitment, retention, and adherence rates of 84.8% (95% confidence interval, CI 0.7-0.9), 92.2% (95% CI 0.7-1.0) and 94.0% (95% CI 91.4-96.2), respectively. Goal attainment was high, and only mild adverse events occurred. Improvements in walking speed (10-Metre Walk Test, effect size r = 0.876), walking distance (6-Minute Walk Test, r = 0.877), functional mobility (Timed Up and Go, r = 0.875), gait distance (r = 0.829) and number of steps (r = 0.834) were observed. Four themes were identified: familiarising with RAGT; enjoyment and acceptance through a trusting therapeutic relationship; actively interacting; and minimising dissatisfaction.DiscussionSufficiently powered randomised controlled trials are needed to validate our results.Trial registrationGerman Clinical Trials Register, DRKS00027887.
| S-EPMC11349200 | biostudies-literature