BACKGROUND Training of young Thoroughbred horses must balance development of cardiopulmonary function and aerobic capacity with loading of the musculoskeletal system that can potentially cause structural damage and/or lameness. High-speed equine treadmills are sometimes used to supplement exercise on a track in the training of young Thoroughbreds because the horse can run at high speeds but wit...

Treadmills are often used by runners when weather conditions are adverse or a specific training effect is desired. Athletes might respond to fatigue differently when running on a treadmill compared with overground conditions, where pace is typically more variable. The purpose of this study was to measure changes in gait parameters over the course of a 10-km treadmill run. Fifteen male competiti...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Impaired balance, gait disturbances, and frequent falls are common problems in people with progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP). This case report describes the use of a modified body weight support treadmill training program to reduce falls and improve the balance and gait of a patient with PSP. CASE DESCRIPTION The patient was a 62-year-old man diagnosed with PSP. His ...

In the last years, there has been an intense technological development of robotic devices for gait rehabilitation in spinal cord injury (SCI) patients. The aim present study was to evaluate energy cost and psychological impact during a program with two different types systems (stationary system on treadmill, Lokomat, overground walking system, Ekso GT). Fifteen SCI patients levels underwent rob...

A unique polygenic model of rat physical activity has been recently developed where rats were selected for the trait of low voluntary wheel running. We utilized this model to identify differences in soleus and plantaris muscles of sedentary low voluntary wheel running rats and physically active low voluntary wheel running rats exposed to moderate amounts of treadmill training. Three groups of 2...

We are developing robotic devices for locomotion training after spinal cord injury. In this paper we compare two approaches to controlling and quantifying bipedal stepping of spinal rats with robots. In the first approach, the rats stepped on a physical treadmill with robot arms attached to their lower shanks. In the second, the rats stepped on a virtual treadmill generated by the robots. The r...

OBJECTIVE To investigate the hypothesis that treadmill training will improve peak fitness, while lowering the energy cost of hemiparetic gait in chronic stroke patients. DESIGN Noncontrolled exercise intervention study with repeated-measures analysis. SETTING Hospital-based senior exercise research center. PARTICIPANTS Twenty-three patients (mean age +/- standard deviation [SD] 67 +/- 8 y...

Increased muscle mitochondria are largely responsible for the increased resistance to fatigue and health benefits ascribed to exercise training. However, very little attention has been given to the likely benefits of increased brain mitochondria in this regard. We examined the effects of exercise training on markers of both brain and muscle mitochondrial biogenesis in relation to endurance capa...

We report on a case-series of four male patients, aimed at investigating the effect of interval training by means of Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) on ambulation ability in spinal cord injury (SCI). Four male motor complete (ASIA-A) participants were enrolled in this study. They were trained to walk supported by FES using progressive interval exercise training on a motorized treadmill....

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of a knee-ankle-foot orthosis powered by artificial pneumatic muscles (PKAFO). METHODS Twenty-three hemiplegic patients (age, 59.6±13.7 years) were assessed 19.7±36.6 months after brain lesion. The 10-m walking time was measured as a gait parameter while the individual walked on a treadmill. Walking speed (m/s), step cycle (cycle/s), and...