A new approach to retrain gait in stroke patients through body weight support and treadmill stimulation.
OBJECTIVE
A new gait training strategy for patients with stroke proposes to support a percentage of the patient's body weight while retraining gait on a treadmill. This research project intended to compare the effects of gait training with body weight support (BWS) and with no body weight support (no-BWS) on clinical outcome measures for patients with stroke.


METHODS
One hundred subjects with stroke were randomized to receive one of two treatments while walking on a treadmill: 50 subjects were trained to walk with up to 40% of their body weight supported by a BWS system with overhead harness (BWS group), and the other 50 subjects were trained to walk bearing full weight on their lower extremities (no-BWS group). Treatment outcomes were assessed on the basis of functional balance, motor recovery, overground walking speed, and overground walking endurance.


RESULTS
After a 6-week training period, the BWS group scored significantly higher than the no-BWS group for functional balance (P = 0.001), motor recovery (P = 0.001), overground walking speed (P = 0.029), and overground w alking endurance (P = 0.018). The follow-up evaluation, 3 months after training, revealed that the BWS group continues to have significantly higher scores for overground walking speed (P = 0.006) and motor recovery (P = 0.039).


CONCLUSIONS
Retraining gait in patients with stroke while a percentage of their body weight was supported resulted in better walking abilities than gait training while the patients were bearing their full weight. This novel gait training strategy provides a dynamic and integrative approach for the treatment of gait dysfunction after stroke.
Visintin
M
M
Jewish Rehabilitation Hospital, Laval, Quebec, Canada.
Barbeau
H
H
Korner-Bitensky
N
N
Mayo
N E
NE
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001835:Body Weight; D002561:Cerebrovascular Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000534:rehabilitation* / Q000628:therapy*; D005080:Exercise Test; D005081:Exercise Therapy; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005684:Gait; D006429:Hemiplegia / Q000209:etiology / Q000534:rehabilitation / Q000628:therapy; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010352:Patient Dropouts; D016896:Treatment Outcome