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Effect of Gait Training With a Walking Assist Robot on Gait Function and Balance in Elderly Adults

Effect of Gait Training With a Walking Assist Robot on Gait Function and Balance in Elderly Adults

Status
Completed
Phases
NA
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT03325998
Enrollment
8
Registered
2017-10-30
Start date
2017-11-01
Completion date
2018-02-28
Last updated
2018-04-18

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Gait, Unsteady, Healthy

Keywords

Exoskeleton Device, Elderly, Gait rehabilitation

Brief summary

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of gait training with the new wearable hip assist robot developed by Samsung Advance Institute of Technology (Samsung Electronics Co, Ltd, Korea) in elderly adults.

Detailed description

Eight elderly adults will participate in this study. All subjects will receive training 3 times per week for 8 weeks for 24 training sessions. Each session is directed by a licensed physical therapist and lasted 60 min (including rest period of 10 min). Brain activity and gait assessment will be performed at visits 0 (baseline), 24 (post-test), and at 3 months (follow-up) after training. Primary objective is to demonstrate the effects of hip assist robot on spatio-temporal parameters measured by motion capture system (Motion Analysis Corporation, Santa Rosa, CA, USA), muscle activation patterns measured by surface electromyography (sEMG) (Noraxon Inc., Scottsdale, AZ, USA), metabolic energy cost parameters measured by portable cardiopulmonary metabolic system (Cosmed K4B2, Rome, Italy) and cortical activation measured by functional Near-Infrared-Spectroscopy (fNIRS) (NIRScout, NIRx, Germany). Secondary objective is to demonstrate the effects of hip assist robot on motor function improvement evaluated by Short Physical Performance Battery Protocol and Score Sheet (SPPB), Berg Balance Scale (BBS), Dynamic Gait Index (DGI), Timed Up and Go (TUG) test, Push and Release (P&R) test, Functional Reach Test (FRT), Korean version Fall Efficacy Scale (K-FES), Manual Muscle Test (MMT) and Range of Motion (ROM).

Interventions

All subjects receive gait training 3 times per week for 8 weeks for 24 training sessions. Each session is directed by a licensed physical therapist and lasted 60 min including rest period of 10 min. Brain activity and gait assessment is performed at visits 0 (baseline), 24 (post-test), and at 3 months (follow-up) after training.

Sponsors

Samsung Medical Center
Lead SponsorOTHER

Study design

Allocation
NA
Intervention model
SINGLE_GROUP
Primary purpose
DEVICE_FEASIBILITY
Masking
NONE

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
65 Years to 84 Years
Healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

1. Age: between 65 and 84 years elderly adults who had no neurological or musculoskeletal abnormalities affecting gait 2. Ability to walk at least 10m regardless of assist devices 3. High levels of physical performance (SPPB \> 7) 4. Subject is willing to be randomized to the control group or the treatment group

Exclusion criteria

1. History of any diseases (eg. lower extremity orthopedic diseases, neurologic disorders, cardiovascular disease, heart failure, uncontrolled hypertension that affect walking capacity, efficiency, and endurance) 2. Severe visual impairment or dizziness that increases the risk of falls

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Change in 10 meter walk test from baseline in gait speedsession 0 (initial visit); session 24 (at approximately 8 weeks); at 3 months (follow-up)Measure of self selected speeds by measuring the time it takes an individual to walk 10 meters. To perform the test, patient walks 10 meters (33 ft) and the time is measured when the leading foot crosses the start line and the finish line. The instructions are: Please walk this distance at your normal pace when I say go.

Countries

South Korea

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026