One-year retention of gait speed improvement in stroke survivors after treatment with a wearable home-use gait device.

Background: Gait impairments after stroke are associated with numerous physical and psychological consequences. Treatment with the iStride gait device has been shown to facilitate improvements to gait function, including gait speed, for chronic stroke survivors with hemiparesis. This study examines the long-term gait speed changes up to 12 months after treatment with the gait device.

Gait Device Treatment Using Telehealth for Individuals With Stroke During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Nonrandomized Pilot Feasibility Study.

Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic, rehabilitation providers and consumers adopted telehealth practices at unprecedented rates. Multiple prepandemic studies demonstrate the feasibility and comparable efficacy between in-clinic and remote treatment for certain impairments caused by stroke, such as upper extremity weakness and impaired motor function. However, less guidance has been available regarding gait assessment and treatment.

Using a pilot study to establish experimental methods for inexpensive instrumented insoles used in dynamic skiing analysis.

Loss of balance leads to increased likelihood of falling for human locomotion. Determining the likelihood of falling for skiing locomotion is challenging because, unlike walking, normal locomotion is not clearly defined. One of the first learned styles of skiing is wedge style (WS).

Potential to fall of bipeds using foot kinematics.

This research compares normal to unexpected slipping gaits of healthy adults to detect potential to fall. Using various x, y, and z position analyses, including a Root Mean Squared Error (RMSE), significant differences are shown between normal and unexpected slipping gaits. Our results show that after heel strike of the slipping foot, the recovery foot rapidly changes position to restore balance and lower falling potential.

Forward kinematics using IMU on-body sensor network for mobile analysis of human kinematics.

The feasibility of large network inertial measurement units (IMUs) are evaluated for purposes requiring feedback. A series of wireless IMUs were attached to a human lower-limb laboratory model outfitted with joint angle encoders. The goal was to discover if large networks of wireless IMUs can give realtime joint orientation data while still maintaining an acceptable degree of accuracy.

Kinetic Gait Analysis Using a Low-Cost Insole.

Abnormal gait caused by stroke or other pathological reasons can greatly impact the life of an individual. Being able to measure and analyze that gait is often critical for rehabilitation. Motion analysis labs and many current methods of gait analysis are expensive and inaccessible to most individuals.

A laboratory insole for analysis of sensor placement to determine ground reaction force and ankle moment in patients with stroke.

An insole system was constructed with 32 sensors inside a size 10 men's shoe. This system allows evaluation of the contributions of individual sensors spread throughout the surface area of the insole. The kinetic variables of interest in this initial study are ground reaction force and anterior-posterior ankle moment.

A feasibility study of an upper limb rehabilitation system using Kinect and computer games.

A new low-cost system for rehabilitation of the impaired upper limb for stroke survivors is presented. A computer game was developed specifically for this purpose and the user's impaired upper extremity is tracked using a downward-pointed Kinect, an inexpensive motion capture system commercially available from Microsoft. A Kalman filter was implemented to reduce data jittering.

The effect of partial weight bearing in a walking boot on plantar pressure distribution and center of pressure.

Physicians routinely prescribe partial weight bearing in a walking boot following fractures of the lower limbs in order to produce the needed mechanical environment to facilitate healing. Plantar pressure measurements can provide key information regarding the mechanical environment experienced by lower limb bones. The effect of walking boots on plantar pressure distribution has been well reported, however, the combined effects of partial weight bearing and walking boots on plantar pressure distribution and center of pressure is unknown.

Liquid cooling system for the vibro-tactile threshold device.

Vibrotactile threshold testing has been used to investigate activation of human somatosensory pathways. A portable vibrotactile threshold testing device called the Vibrotactile Threshold Evaluator for the Workplace (VTEW) was designed for screening of carpal tunnel syndrome in the workplace, and initially contained a small fan for cooling. During subject testing, the device is operated intermittently, which causes the linear actuator to warm the tactile probe.

Instrumented insole vs. force plate: a comparison of center of plantar pressure.

Instrumented insoles allow analysis of gait outside of the confines of a motion analysis lab and capture motion data on every step. This study assesses the concurrent validity of center of plantar pressure (COPP) measurements during walking, and shows that our custom instrumented insoles compare favorably to an Advanced Mechanical Technology Inc. (AMTI) force plate in a clinical motion laboratory, particularly when the large difference in price is considered (an insole is nearly two orders of magnitude less expensive than a force plate).

A wireless sensory feedback system for real-time gait modification.

Current rehabilitation technology and techniques have proven effective at modifying and correcting gait abnormalities. They are however limited to laboratory and clinical settings, under the supervision of a specialist. Conventional techniques for quantifying gait asymmetries can be combined with sensory feedback methods to provide an intuitive and inexpensive feedback system for extra-clinical rehabilitation.

Progress in vibrotactile threshold evaluation techniques: a review.

Vibrotactile threshold (VT) testing has been used for nearly a century to investigate activation of human somatosensory pathways. This use of vibrotactile stimuli provides a versatile tool for detecting peripheral neuropathies, and has been broadly used for investigation of carpal tunnel syndrome. New applications include investigation of drug-induced neuropathies and diabetes-related neuropathies.

Gait analysis using a shoe-integrated wireless sensor system.

We describe a wireless wearable system that was developed to provide quantitative gait analysis outside the confines of the traditional motion laboratory. The sensor suite includes three orthogonal accelerometers, three orthogonal gyroscopes, four force sensors, two bidirectional bend sensors, two dynamic pressure sensors, as well as electric field height sensors. The "GaitShoe" was built to be worn in any shoe, without interfering with gait and was designed to collect data unobtrusively, in any environment, and over long periods.