Video at link.
Has your doctor evaluated these earlier
ones? NO? I guess you don't have a functioning stroke doctor! I expect
my doctor to be competent and up-to-date on all stroke rehab!
hip exoskeleton (5 posts to May 2020)
Exoskeleton Could Help Stroke Victims Walk Again
Researchers from the University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass) announced a study that explored how a portable robotic hip exoskeleton could help with stroke rehabilitation.
Stroke victims often struggle with walking as the distances between their steps can be uneven. However, according to the research team, the exoskeleton could train people to alter this walking asymmetry.
The proof-of-concept study was inspired by split-belt treadmills. These machines feature a pair of belts that move at different speeds and have helped stroke patients correct uneven walking. Wouter Hoogkamer, an assistant professor at UMass and an author of the study, explained that a human’s nervous system eventually adapts to the treadmill’s different speeds, which leads to a more symmetrical walk when the belts move at the same rate.
However, the benefits of this method are limited to the treadmill and do not fully extend to walking overground. With this in mind, the researchers designed their exoskeleton to apply resistive and assistive forces to hip joints, mimicking training on a split-belt treadmill.
The researchers proved that their exoskeleton can modify walking asymmetry and now plan to test the device overground. The team also plans to measure neural changes related to exoskeleton use and test the new method on stroke victims.
The development follows an announcement last September that the National Institutes of Health awarded a four-year, $1.14 million grant to a team of UMass researchers to create a way to track body movements. The research will target rehabilitation for stroke victims, with the possibility of additional applications that cover a range of disciplines.
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