Wearable Adaptive Resistance Training Improves Ankle Strength, Walking Efficiency and Mobility in Cerebral Palsy: A Pilot Clinical Trial
Goal: To determine the efficacy of wearable adaptive resistance training for rapidly improving walking ability in children with cerebral palsy (CP). Methods: Six children with spastic CP (five males, one female; mean age 14y 11mo; three hemiplegic, three diplegic; Gross Motor Function Classification...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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IEEE
2020-01-01
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| Series: | IEEE Open Journal of Engineering in Medicine and Biology |
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| Online Access: | https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/9246668/ |
| _version_ | 1818457973900443648 |
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| author | Benjamin C. Conner Nushka M. Remec Elizabeth K. Orum Emily M. Frank Zachary F. Lerner |
| author_facet | Benjamin C. Conner Nushka M. Remec Elizabeth K. Orum Emily M. Frank Zachary F. Lerner |
| author_sort | Benjamin C. Conner |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Goal: To determine the efficacy of wearable adaptive resistance training for rapidly improving walking ability in children with cerebral palsy (CP). Methods: Six children with spastic CP (five males, one female; mean age 14y 11mo; three hemiplegic, three diplegic; Gross Motor Function Classification System [GMFCS] levels I and II) underwent ten, 20-minute training sessions over four weeks with a wearable adaptive resistance device. Strength, speed, walking efficiency, timed up and go (TUG), and six-minute walk test (6MWT) were used to measure training outcomes. Results: Participants showed increased average plantar flexor strength (17 ± 8%, p = 0.02), increased preferred walking speed on the treadmill (39 ± 25%, p = 0.04), improved metabolic cost of transport (33 ± 9%, p = 0.03), and enhanced performance on the timed up and go (11 ± 9%, p = 0.04) and six-minute walk test (13 ± 9%, p = 0.04). Conclusions: The observed increase in preferred walking speed, reduction in metabolic cost of transport, and improved performance on clinical tests of mobility highlights the potentially transformative nature of this novel therapy; the rate at which this intervention elicited improved function was 3 - 6 times greater than what has been reported previously. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-14T22:51:05Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-5e5acccf05744c868b3f992b4e898851 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2644-1276 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-14T22:51:05Z |
| publishDate | 2020-01-01 |
| publisher | IEEE |
| record_format | Article |
| series | IEEE Open Journal of Engineering in Medicine and Biology |
| spelling | doaj.art-5e5acccf05744c868b3f992b4e8988512022-12-21T22:44:44ZengIEEEIEEE Open Journal of Engineering in Medicine and Biology2644-12762020-01-01128228910.1109/OJEMB.2020.30353169246668Wearable Adaptive Resistance Training Improves Ankle Strength, Walking Efficiency and Mobility in Cerebral Palsy: A Pilot Clinical TrialBenjamin C. Conner0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9567-9989Nushka M. Remec1Elizabeth K. Orum2Emily M. Frank3Zachary F. Lerner4https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7359-436XUniversity of Arizona College of Medicine - Phoenix, Phoenix, AZ, USAPhoenix Children's Hospital, Phoenix, AZ, USACollege of Health Solutions, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USACollege of Health Solutions, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USAMechanical Engineering Department, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ, USAGoal: To determine the efficacy of wearable adaptive resistance training for rapidly improving walking ability in children with cerebral palsy (CP). Methods: Six children with spastic CP (five males, one female; mean age 14y 11mo; three hemiplegic, three diplegic; Gross Motor Function Classification System [GMFCS] levels I and II) underwent ten, 20-minute training sessions over four weeks with a wearable adaptive resistance device. Strength, speed, walking efficiency, timed up and go (TUG), and six-minute walk test (6MWT) were used to measure training outcomes. Results: Participants showed increased average plantar flexor strength (17 ± 8%, p = 0.02), increased preferred walking speed on the treadmill (39 ± 25%, p = 0.04), improved metabolic cost of transport (33 ± 9%, p = 0.03), and enhanced performance on the timed up and go (11 ± 9%, p = 0.04) and six-minute walk test (13 ± 9%, p = 0.04). Conclusions: The observed increase in preferred walking speed, reduction in metabolic cost of transport, and improved performance on clinical tests of mobility highlights the potentially transformative nature of this novel therapy; the rate at which this intervention elicited improved function was 3 - 6 times greater than what has been reported previously.https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/9246668/Cerebral palsyexoskeletonplantar flexorneurorehabilitation |
| spellingShingle | Benjamin C. Conner Nushka M. Remec Elizabeth K. Orum Emily M. Frank Zachary F. Lerner Wearable Adaptive Resistance Training Improves Ankle Strength, Walking Efficiency and Mobility in Cerebral Palsy: A Pilot Clinical Trial IEEE Open Journal of Engineering in Medicine and Biology Cerebral palsy exoskeleton plantar flexor neurorehabilitation |
| title | Wearable Adaptive Resistance Training Improves Ankle Strength, Walking Efficiency and Mobility in Cerebral Palsy: A Pilot Clinical Trial |
| title_full | Wearable Adaptive Resistance Training Improves Ankle Strength, Walking Efficiency and Mobility in Cerebral Palsy: A Pilot Clinical Trial |
| title_fullStr | Wearable Adaptive Resistance Training Improves Ankle Strength, Walking Efficiency and Mobility in Cerebral Palsy: A Pilot Clinical Trial |
| title_full_unstemmed | Wearable Adaptive Resistance Training Improves Ankle Strength, Walking Efficiency and Mobility in Cerebral Palsy: A Pilot Clinical Trial |
| title_short | Wearable Adaptive Resistance Training Improves Ankle Strength, Walking Efficiency and Mobility in Cerebral Palsy: A Pilot Clinical Trial |
| title_sort | wearable adaptive resistance training improves ankle strength walking efficiency and mobility in cerebral palsy a pilot clinical trial |
| topic | Cerebral palsy exoskeleton plantar flexor neurorehabilitation |
| url | https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/9246668/ |
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