BACKGROUND Gait disorder, a key contributor to fall and poor quality of life, represents a major therapeutic challenge in Parkinson's disease (PD). The efficacy of acupuncture for PD remains unclear, largely due to methodological flaws and lack of studies using objective outcome measures. OBJECTIVE To objectively assess the efficacy of electroacupuncture (EA) for gait disorders using body-wor...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to compare treadmill and electromechanical gait trainer therapy in subacute, nonambulatory stroke survivors. The gait trainer was designed to provide nonambulatory subjects the repetitive practice of a gait-like movement without overexerting therapists. METHODS This was a randomized, controlled study with a crossover design following an A-B...

Background and Purpose—The purpose of this study was to compare treadmill and electromechanical gait trainer therapy in subacute, nonambulatory stroke survivors. The gait trainer was designed to provide nonambulatory subjects the repetitive practice of a gait-like movement without overexerting therapists. Methods—This was a randomized, controlled study with a crossover design following an A-B-A...

OBJECTIVES Cognitive processing plays an important role in balance and gait and is a contributing factor to falls in older adults. This relationship may be explained by the fact that higher order cognitive functions such as executive functions are called upon while walking. The purpose of this study was to examine whether a cognitive training intervention leads to significant improvements on me...

Objective to investigate whether slow gait speed is associated with cognitive impairment and further whether the association is modified by obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA). Methods in total, 2,222 adults aged 49-80 years, free from dementia, stroke and head injury were asked to walk a 4-m course at fast and usual gait speeds. The time taken to walk was measured. All participants completed the ...

The aim of this systematic review was to evaluate and summarize the current evidence base related to the clinical efficacy of gait analysis. A literature review was conducted to identify references related to human gait analysis published between January 2000 and September 2009 plus relevant older references. The references were assessed independently by four reviewers using a hierarchical mode...

BACKGROUND More than half of the patients harbouring the m.3243A > G mutation were found to have trouble maintaining balance when walking in a recent study by our group. Others demonstrated that these patients had an abnormal gait pattern, as quantified by gait analysis. Gait analysis is an emerging method to quantify subtle changes in walking pattern, also during therapeutic interventions. The...

Humans employ various control strategies to initiate and maintain bodily movement. In case that the normal gait function is impaired, exoskeleton robots provide motor assistance during therapy. While the robotic control system builds on kinematic gait functions, the patient's voluntary efforts to initiate motion also contribute to the effectiveness of the therapy process. However, it is current...

This study assesses femoral neck shortening and its effect on gait pattern and muscle strength in patients with femoral neck fractures treated with internal fixation. Seventy-six patients from a multicenter randomized controlled trial participated. Patient characteristics and Short Form 12 and Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) scores were collected. Femoral ...

We have developed an autonomous, walking humanoid robot ’elvina’ and performed experiments in evolutionary programming with it, in order to optimize a by hand developed locomotion controller. A steady state evolutionary strategy is running on the robot’s onboard computer. Individuals are evaluated and fitness scores are automatically determined using the robots onboard vision system and sensors...