Locomotor training using an overground robotic exoskeleton in long-term manual wheelchair users with a chronic spinal cord injury living in the community: Lessons learned from a feasibility study in terms of recruitment, attendance, learnability, performance and safety

Dany H. Gagnon, Manuel J. Escalona, Martin Vermette, Lívia P. Carvalho, Antony D. Karelis, Cyril Duclos, Mylène Aubertin-Leheudre
2018 Journal of NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation  
For individuals who sustain a complete motor spinal cord injury (SCI) and rely on a wheelchair as their primary mode of locomotion, overground robotic exoskeletons represent a promising solution to stand and walk again. Although overground robotic exoskeletons have gained tremendous attention over the past decade and are now being transferred from laboratories to clinical settings, their effects remain unclear given the paucity of scientific evidence and the absence of large-scale clinical
more » ... s. This study aims to examine the feasibility of a locomotor training program with an overground robotic exoskeleton in terms of recruitment, attendance, and drop-out rates as well as walking performance, learnability, and safety. Methods: Individuals with a SCI were invited to participate in a 6 to 8-week locomotor training program with a robotic exoskeleton encompassing 18 sessions. Selected participants underwent a comprehensive screening process and completed two familiarization sessions with the robotic exoskeleton. The outcome measures were the rate of recruitment of potential participants, the rate of attendance at training sessions, the rate of drop-outs, the ability to walk with the exoskeleton, and its progression over the program as well as the adverse events.
doi:10.1186/s12984-018-0354-2 pmid:29490678 pmcid:PMC5831695 fatcat:hpr6xhemnjcdndeywjk4hk5zeu