title: A Portable Gait Asymmetry Rehabilitation System for Individuals with Stroke Using a Vibrotactile Feedback.
abstract: Gait asymmetry caused by hemiparesis results in reduced gait efficiency and reduced activity levels. In this paper, a portable rehabilitation device is proposed that can serve as a tool in diagnosing gait abnormalities in individuals with stroke and has the capability of providing vibration feedback to help compensate for the asymmetric gait. Force-sensitive resistor (FSR) based insoles are used to detect ground contact and estimate stance time. A controller (Arduino) provides different vibration feedback based on the gait phase measurement. It also allows wireless interaction with a personal computer (PC) workstation using the XBee transceiver module, featuring data logging capabilities for subsequent analysis. Walking trials conducted with healthy young subjects allowed us to observe that the system can influence abnormality in the gait. The results of trials showed that a vibration cue based on temporal information was more effective than intensity information. With clinical experiments conducted for individuals with stroke, significant improvement in gait symmetry was observed with minimal disturbance caused to the balance and gait speed as an effect of the biofeedback. Future studies of the long-term rehabilitation effects of the proposed system and further improvements to the system will result in an inexpensive, easy-to-use, and effective rehabilitation device.
authors.affiliation: School of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering & ReCAPT, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju 660701, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Muhammad Raheel
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Afzal
authors.affiliation: Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Gyeongsang National University Hospital, Jinju 660702, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Min-Kyun
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Oh
authors.affiliation: Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Gyeongsang National University Hospital, Jinju 660702, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Chang-Hee
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Departments of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Samsung Changwon Hospital, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Changwon 630723, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Young Sook
authors.initials: YS
authors.lastname: Park
authors.affiliation: School of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering & ReCAPT, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju 660701, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Jungwon
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Yoon
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005246:Feedback; D005260:Female; D005684:Gait / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D020521:Stroke / Q000503:physiopathology*; D000071939:Stroke Rehabilitation; D014110:Touch; D014584:User-Computer Interface; D014732:Vibration; D016138:Walking