Gait Training Using a Robotic Hip Exoskeleton Improves Metabolic Gait Efficiency in the Elderly

Overview

Journal Sci Rep

Specialty Science

Date 2019 May 11

PMID 31073188

Citations 25

Authors

Elena Martini

Simona Crea

Andrea Parri

Luca Bastiani

Ugo Faraguna

Zach McKinney

Raffaello Molino-Lova

Lorenza Pratali

Nicola Vitiello

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Robotic exoskeletons are regarded as promising technologies for neurological gait rehabilitation but have been investigated comparatively little as training aides to facilitate active aging in the elderly. This study investigated the feasibility of an exoskeletal Active Pelvis Orthosis (APO) for cardiopulmonary gait training in the elderly. Ten healthy elderly volunteers exhibited a decreased (-26.6 ± 16.1%) Metabolic Cost of Transport (MCoT) during treadmill walking following a 4-week APO-assisted training program, while no significant changes were observed for a randomly assigned control group (n = 10) performing traditional self-paced overground walking. Moreover, robot-assisted locomotion was found to require 4.24 ± 2.57% less oxygen consumption than free treadmill walking at the same speed. These findings support the adoption of exoskeletal devices for the training of frail individuals, thus opening new possibilities for sustainable strategies for healthy aging.

Citing Articles

Bilateral hip exoskeleton assistance enables faster walking in individuals with chronic stroke-related gait impairments.

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Comparing effects of wearable robot-assisted gait training on functional changes and neuroplasticity: A preliminary study.

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