Article

OBJECTIVE: To assess the effects of guidance force (GF) and gait speed (GS) on
cardiorespiratory responses and energy cost in subacute dependent ambulatory
patients with stroke.
DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: University
rehabilitation hospital. PARTICIPANTS: Patients with subacute stroke (N=10; mean
age, 64.50+/-19.20y) who were dependent ambulators (functional ambulation
category </=2). INTERVENTIONS: Patients participated in cardiorespiratory tests
during robot-assisted gait training. Subjects walked at a fixed percentage (50%)
of body weight support and various percentages of GF (100%, 80%, and 60%) and GS
(1.4 and 1.8km/h). The therapist encouraged patients to maximize their locomotor
ability. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: During the cardiorespiratory tests, oxygen
consumption (V o2), heart rate, and respiratory exchange ratio were measured
continuously to assess cardiometabolic demands. RESULTS: There were no
significant differences in cardiometabolic demands according to GS (1.4 vs
1.8km/h). There were no significant differences in cardiometabolic demands
according to GF at a GS of 1.4km/h. However, lowering GF decreased V o2 when
comparing GFs of 100% (6.89+/-2.38mL/kg/min), 80% (6.46+/-1.73mL/kg/min), and 60%
(5.77+/-1.71mL/kg/min) at a GS of 1.8km/h (P=.03). CONCLUSIONS: Lowering the GF
of robot-assisted gait training at a higher GS cannot induce a sufficient
cardiometabolic demand for subacute dependent ambulatory patients with stroke.
This implies that it is important to take the patient's functional ability into
consideration when choosing training protocols.
CI - Copyright (c) 2016 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by
Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Langue : ANGLAIS