Affiliations: [a] Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Shuang Ho Hospital, Taipei Medical University, New Taipei City, Taiwan (ROC) | [b] School of Gerontology Health Management, College of Nursing, Taipei Medical University, Taipei City, Taiwan (ROC) | [c] Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei City, Taiwan (ROC) | [d] Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Wan Fang Medical Center, Taipei Medical University, Taipei City, Taiwan (ROC) | [e] Graduate Institute of Injury Prevention and Control, Taipei Medical University, Taipei City, Taiwan (ROC)
Correspondence:
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Address for correspondence: Yen-Nung Lin, MD, MS, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Wan Fang Hospital, Taipei Medical University, 111 Hsing-Long Road, Section 3, Taipei 116, Taiwan. Tel.: +886 2 29307930/Ext. 1600; Fax: +886 2 29333025; E-mail: semitune@gmail.com.
Abstract: BACKGROUND:Robot-assisted gait training has been introduced as a practical treatment adjunctive to traditional stroke rehabilitation to provide high-intensity repetitive training. The design of robots is usually based on either the end-effector and exoskeleton method. The novel Robot Gait Training System (RGTS), a hybrid mixed type of end-effector and exoskeleton, tries to combine advantages from both methods. OBJECTIVE:This preliminary study was conducted to report whether this novel system is feasible and safe when applied to non-ambulatory subacute patients with stroke. METHODS:Six patients with stroke participated in this study and received 15 daily RGTS sessions. The outcome measures included the lower extremity subscale of the Fugl-Meyer Assessment (FMA-LE), Postural Assessment Scale for Stroke (PASS), Berg Balance Scale (BBS), and Barthel Index (BI). These measurements were performed at the pretest and posttest. RESULTS:The RGTS demonstrated significant after-before changes in the FMA-LE, PASS, BBS and BI (p < 0.05), which indicated improvements substantially across the neurological status, balance, and activities of daily living after intervention. CONCLUSIONS:This study demonstrated that the novel RGTS designed was practical, safe, and suitable to use in substantial leg dysfunction with stroke.
