Robot-assisted gait training improves the walking ability of hemiplegic patients

Abstract

Objective To evaluate the effect of robot-assisted gait training on the walking ability of hemiplegic patients. Methods Sixty hemiplegic patients were randomly divided into a control group and a treatment group, each of 30. Both groups were given traditional rehabilitation and drug therapy. The control group was additionally provided with the traditional gait training, while the treatment group additionally received robot-assisted gait training. The gait training lasted 30 minutes a day, 5 days per week. Before and after 8 weeks of training, the time parameters, phase parameters, the joint angles of the lower limbs, and the peak ground reaction forces of both groups were evaluated using a three-dimensional gait analysis system. Results After the intervention, the walking velocity, stride frequency and stride length had increased in the treatment group, while stride width had decreased. Significant improvement was observed in the treatment group in terms of the percentage of swing phase on the paretic side, the percentage of stance phase on the paretic side, the single support time ratio, the percentage of double support phase, the range of motion of the hip and knee joints, and the peak vertical and forward ground reaction force as a percentage of body weight. The improvements were significantly greater than those observed in the control group. Conclusions Compared with traditional walking training, robot-assisted gait training can be more effective in improving the walking ability of hemiplegic patients. Key words: Robots; Gait training; Walking ability; Gait analysis