Robot-Assisted Gait Training with Trexo Home

Users, Usage and Initial Impacts

Bibliographic Data

ID15716563
AuthorsChrista M Diot (0000-0002-7914-0860, Alberta Children's Hospital), Jessica L Youngblood (University of Calgary), Anya H Friesen (University of Calgary), Tammy Wong (University of Calgary), Tyler A Santos (University of Calgary), Benjamin M Norman (University of Calgary), Kelly A Larkin-Kaiser (0000-0001-6205-0212, University of Calgary), Elizabeth G Condliffe (0000-0002-0178-616X, University of Calgary, corresponding author)
Year2023
Volume10
Issue3
Pages437-437
Publication date2023-02-24
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueChildren (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2227-9067 • E-ISSN: 2227-9067
PublisherMultidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (PUBLISHER • CH)
DOI10.3390/children10030437
PMID36979997
OpenAlexW4321786587
LanguageEN
References cited31

Robotic gait training has the potential to improve secondary health conditions for people with severe neurological impairment. The purpose of this study was to describe who is using the Trexo robotic gait trainer, how much training is achieved in the home and community, and what impacts are observed after the initial month of use. In this prospective observational single-cohort study, parent-reported questionnaires were collected pre- and post-training. Of the 70 participants, the median age was 7 years (range 2 to 24), 83% had CP, and 95% did not walk for mobility. Users trained 2-5 times/week. After the initial month, families reported a significant reduction in sleep disturbance ( p = 0.0066). Changes in bowel function, positive affect, and physical activity were not statistically significant. These findings suggest that families with children who have significant mobility impairments can use a robotic gait trainer frequently in a community setting and that sleep significantly improves within the first month of use. This intervention holds promise as a novel strategy to impact multi-modal impairments for this population. Future work should include an experimental study design over a longer training period to begin to understand the relationship between training volume and its full potential

Affect (linguistics · Gait · Gait training · Observational study · Physical medicine and rehabilitation · Physical therapy · Population · Trainer · Assistive Technology in Communication and Mobility · Cerebral Palsy and Movement Disorders · Computer Science · Medicine · Psychology · Spinal Cord Injury Research · Rehabilitation