Article

PURPOSE: To evaluate the feasibility and reliability of a novel stiffness
assessment tool implemented in the driven gait orthosis Paediatric Lokomat; to
investigate the influence of single robotic-assisted gait training (RAGT) on
muscle stiffness in children with cerebral palsy (CP). METHODS: Ten children with
spastic CP conducted a single standard RAGT session and stiffness was assessed
before and after the RAGT. Nine of the ten subjects were tested twice on the same
day to investigate test-retest reliability, intraclass correlation coefficients
(ICCs), standard error of measurement (SEM), coefficient of variation of the
method error (CV(ME)) and resistive torques during passive leg movements
(stiffness in Nm/ degrees ) were calculated. RESULTS: ICCs showed high
reliability (0.83-0.97) for hip and knee movements. SEM and CV(ME) indicated
0.028-0.085 Nm/ degrees , 9.5-23.0% of test-retest variability in hip and
0.018-0.064 Nm/ degrees , 13.3-43.5% in knee measures. Using the assessment tool,
a significant decrease in muscle stiffness in participants, especially in
children with high levels of muscle tone, could be shown after a single session
of RAGT. CONCLUSIONS: The assessment tool L-STIFF is a feasible tool for
automated measurement of stiffness in children with CP, but it is not sensitive
enough to record small changes in muscle tone.

Langue : ANGLAIS