ABSTRACT
This study aimed to investigate walking ability and balance improvement of patients with ataxia caused by brain lesions after end-effector type robot (Morning Walk® )-assisted gait training. This study randomly assigned 19 patients to one of two groups: 30 minutes of Morning Walk® training with 1 hour of conventional physiotherapy (Morning Walk® group; n = 10) or 1.5 hours of conventional physiotherapy (Control group; n = 9). Five treatment sessions per week were given for 3 weeks. The primary outcomes were walking ability and balance, which were assessed by the functional ambulation category (FAC) and Berg Balance Scale (BBS), respectively. The secondary outcomes included 10-meter Walk Test (10mWT), Rivermead Mobility Index (RMI), Motricity Index (MI), and Modified Barthel Index (MBI). At baseline, there was no statistically significant difference between the two groups except MBI. After the treatment, the Morning Walk® group showed significant improvement in the FAC, BBS, 10mWT, RMI and MBI. The control group showed significant improvement in the BBS, 10mWT, RMI and MBI. Inter-group comparison demonstrated that the ∆FAC, ∆10mWT and ∆RMI of the Morning Walk® group were significantly higher than those of the control group. Our results suggest that the patients with ataxia receiving Morning Walk® -assisted gait training might improve greater in walking ability and balance than those trained with conventional physiotherapy.
ABSTRACT
This study aimed to investigate walking ability and balance improvement of patients with ataxia caused by brain lesions after end-effector type robot (Morning Walk® )-assisted gait training. This study randomly assigned 19 patients to one of two groups: 30 minutes of Morning Walk® training with 1 hour of conventional physiotherapy (Morning Walk® group; n = 10) or 1.5 hours of conventional physiotherapy (Control group; n = 9). Five treatment sessions per week were given for 3 weeks. The primary outcomes were walking ability and balance, which were assessed by the functional ambulation category (FAC) and Berg Balance Scale (BBS), respectively. The secondary outcomes included 10-meter Walk Test (10mWT), Rivermead Mobility Index (RMI), Motricity Index (MI), and Modified Barthel Index (MBI). At baseline, there was no statistically significant difference between the two groups except MBI. After the treatment, the Morning Walk® group showed significant improvement in the FAC, BBS, 10mWT, RMI and MBI. The control group showed significant improvement in the BBS, 10mWT, RMI and MBI. Inter-group comparison demonstrated that the ∆FAC, ∆10mWT and ∆RMI of the Morning Walk® group were significantly higher than those of the control group. Our results suggest that the patients with ataxia receiving Morning Walk® -assisted gait training might improve greater in walking ability and balance than those trained with conventional physiotherapy.
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To investigate if therapeutic horseback riding (THR) can improve language and cognitive function in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or intellectual disability (ID). METHODS: We conducted a prospective case-control study on children diagnosed with ASD or ID. Eighteen and 11 children were enrolled for THR and control groups, respectively. For 8 weeks, those in the THR group underwent conventional therapy plus 30 minutes of THR per week while controls only received conventional therapy. Participants’ language (using Receptive and Expressive Vocabulary Test [REVT] and Preschool Receptive-Expressive Language Scale [PRES]) and cognitive abilities (using Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children [K-ABC] and the cognitive domain of Bayley Scales of Infant Development-II [BSID-II]) were assessed at baseline and at 8 weeks after treatment. RESULTS: There was no baseline difference between the two groups. In the THR group, there were statistically significant improvements in most domains after THR including receptive and expressive language and cognition compared to those before THR. In the control group, however, only receptive vocabulary ability assessed by REVT and cognitive function assessed by BSID-II showed improvements after conventional therapy. However, there were no statistically significant differences in language or cognitive abilities between the two groups at 8 weeks after treatment. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that THR might improve language and cognitive abilities. Although the mechanisms and pathways involved in such improvements are currently unclear based on our findings, THR might have potential to optimize language and cognitive abilities of children with ASD and ID.