Effectiveness of automated locomotor training in patients with chronic incomplete spinal cord injury: a multicenter trial.

Objective: To determine whether automated locomotor training with a driven-gait orthosis (DGO) can increase functional mobility in people with chronic, motor incomplete spinal cord injury (SCI).

Design: Repeated assessment of the same patients or single-case experimental A-B design.

Setting: Research units of rehabilitation hospitals in Chicago; Heidelberg, Germany; and Basel and Zurich, Switzerland.

Robotic-assisted, body-weight-supported treadmill training in individuals following motor incomplete spinal cord injury.

Background And Purpose: Performance of therapist-assisted, body-weight-supported treadmill training (BWSTT) to enhance walking ability of people with neurological injury is an area of intense research. Its application in the clinical setting, however, is limited by the personnel and labor requirements placed on physical therapists. Recent development of motorized ("robotic") rehabilitative devices that provide assistance during stepping may improve delivery of BWSTT.