ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To compare a walking reeducation program with robotic locomotor training plus overground therapy (LKOGT) to conventional overground training (OGT) in individuals with incomplete upper motor neuron (UMN) or lower motor neuron (LMN) injuries having either traumatic or nontraumatic nonprogressive etiology. DESIGN: Randomized open controlled trial with blind evaluation by an independent observer. SETTING: An inpatient spinal cord injury rehabilitation center. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 88 adults within 6 months of spinal cord injury onset (group A, 44 with UMN injury, and group B, 44 with LMN injury) were graded on the American Spinal Injury Association Impairment Scale as C or D. Each of these groups was then randomly allocated to conditions 1 or 2. INTERVENTIONS: Condition 1: Subgroups A1 and B1 were treated with LKOGT for 60 minutes. Condition 2: Subgroups A2 and B2 received 60 minutes of conventional OGT 5 days per week for 8 weeks. Subjects with UMN and LMN were randomized into 2 training groups. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Ten-meter walk test and 6-minute walk test (6MWT). Walking Index for Spinal Cord Injury II, lower extremity motor score (LEMS), and the FIM-Locomotor were secondary outcome measures. RESULTS: By using the LKOGT program compared with OGT, we found significant differences in the 6MWT for groups A1 and B1. LKOGT also provided higher scores than did OGT in secondary outcomes such as the LEMS and the FIM-Locomotor. CONCLUSIONS: Robotic-assisted step training yielded better results in the 6MWT and the LEMS in patients with UMN and LMN.
Subject(s)
Exercise Therapy/methods , Motor Neuron Disease/rehabilitation , Robotics/methods , Spinal Cord Injuries/diagnosis , Spinal Cord Injuries/rehabilitation , Walking , Adult , Analysis of Variance , Female , Follow-Up Studies , Gait Disorders, Neurologic/diagnosis , Gait Disorders, Neurologic/rehabilitation , Humans , Injury Severity Score , Lower Extremity/physiopathology , Male , Middle Aged , Motor Neuron Disease/diagnosis , Muscle Strength/physiology , Paraplegia/rehabilitation , Quadriplegia/rehabilitation , Rehabilitation Centers , Single-Blind Method , Time Factors , Treatment Outcome , Upper Extremity/physiopathologyABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: About 75% of persons with ASIA (American Spinal Injury Association) Impairment Scale C and D incomplete spinal cord injury (SCI) achieve walking ability. OBJECTIVE: To compare a walking reeducation program using Lokomat with conventional overground training among individuals with incomplete SCI of both traumatic and nontraumatic etiology. METHODS: A total of 80 participants from 3 to 6 months after onset admitted to 1 site for rehabilitation were included in a single-blind randomized clinical trial of 2 parallel groups, with blind evaluation by independent observers. Patients received 40 walking reeducation sessions of equal time using a Lokomat program with overground practice or overground mobility therapy alone. Primary measurements of outcome were walking speed and the Walking Index for Spinal Cord Injury (WISCI II). Secondary outcomes were the 6-minute walk test, locomotor section of the Functional Independence Measure, Lower Extremity Motor Score (LEMS), Ashworth Scale, and Visual Analog Scale for pain. RESULTS: No significant differences were found at entry between treatment groups. Walking speed for Lokomat (0.4m/s [0.6-0.2]) and overground therapy (0.3m/s [0.5-0.2]) groups did not differ. The WISCI II for the Lokomat group (16 [8.5-19]) was better than for overground therapy (9 [8-16]). The 6-minute walk test and LEMS displayed significant differences in favor of Lokomat therapy but were not corrected for multiple comparisons. CONCLUSIONS: Robotic-assisted training was equivalent to conventional walk training in patients with a variety of nonprogressive spinal cord pathologies for walking speed, but the need for orthotics and assistive devices was reduced, perhaps because of greater leg strength in the robotic group.
