Enhancing Heart Rate-Based Estimation of Energy Expenditure and Exercise Intensity in Patients Post Stroke.

Background: Indirect calorimetry is the gold standard field-testing technique for measuring energy expenditure and exercise intensity based on the volume of oxygen consumed (VO, mL O/min). Although heart rate is often used as a proxy for VO, heart rate-based estimates of VO may be inaccurate after stroke due to changes in the heart rate-VO relationship. Our objective was to evaluate in people post stroke the accuracy of using heart rate to estimate relative walking VO (wVO) and classify exercise intensity.

Autonomous Control of Music to Retrain Walking After Stroke.

Background: Post-stroke care guidelines highlight continued rehabilitation as essential; however, many stroke survivors cannot participate in outpatient rehabilitation. Technological advances in wearable sensing, treatment algorithms, and care delivery interfaces have created new opportunities for high-efficacy rehabilitation interventions to be delivered autonomously in any setting (ie, clinic, community, or home).

Methods: We developed an autonomous rehabilitation system that combines the closed-loop control of music with real-time gait analysis to fully automate patient-tailored walking rehabilitation.