Effects of Assist-As-Needed Upper Extremity Robotic Therapy after Incomplete Spinal Cord Injury: A Parallel-Group Controlled Trial

2017 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Michael Frullo
2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Joyce Karoline Friosi de Carvalho ◽  
Cristhina Bonilha Huster Siegle ◽  
Daniela Mitiyo Odagiri Utiyama ◽  
Denise Matheus ◽  
Denise Vianna Machado Ayres ◽  
...  

Restoring the ability to walk, especially independently, is one of the goals in the rehabilitation of patients with incomplete spinal cord injury (ISCI). The G-EO System (GS) robotic gait training acts as a reinforcer of the repetitive and specific practice of the gait phases. Objective: Investigate the combined effects of physiotherapy and robotic therapy on gait functionality in relation to balance and gait speed in patients with ISCI. Methods: Retrospective cohort study with 14 patients in the chronic phase of the disease, using the GS as a robotic intervention for gait and stairs, consisting of a 20-session protocol associated with conventional physical therapy. We used the 10-meter Walk Test (10WT) and the Berg Balance Scale (BBS). P values <0.05 were considered statistically significant using the Wilcoxon test at the beginning of conventional physical therapy and before and after intervention. Results: At the 10WT, the mean initial velocity ranged from 2.60 m/s ± 1.72 at the beginning of conventional physical therapy to 1.57 m/s ± 0.80 at the end of the 20 GS sessions with p = 0.0424. For BBS at the beginning of conventional physical therapy, the average was 31.85 points ± 12.50, and 42.35 ± 14.25 at the end of the 20 GS sessions, with p = 0.0096. Conclusions: Robotic gait therapy associated with conventional physiotherapy has been shown to be effective in promoting balance and gait speed improvement in individuals in the chronic phase after involvement of incomplete spinal cord injury.


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