Acta Bioeng Biomech. 2026 Oct 16;28(2):121-130. doi: 10.37190/abb/224359. eCollection 2026 Jan 1.
ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: Gait after a stroke is characterized by a number of abnormalities, such as reduced walking speed, impaired stability, as well as asymmetry. This study presents a novel assistive device designed to aid gait training in stroke survivors by providing integrated visual, auditory, and tactile stimuli informing about lower limb weight-bearing and step length symmetry.
METHODS: Nine patients with hemiparesis at an early stage post-stroke were included in the study. A markerless 3D system was applied to assess gait. Participants walked at self-selected pace and were wearing their own orthotic devices. Gait speed, step length, gait phase duration, and cadence were measured. A symmetry index was calculated for step length and lower limb weight-bearing. The program consisted of ten gait training sessions with the assistive device, each session taking 30 min.
RESULTS: Improved gait parameters were observed when acoustic and visual prompting was applied alone or in combination with tactile prompting. At the end of the program, decrease in step length asymmetry was observed and there was no statistically significant difference in the mean step length between the paretic and non-paretic lower limb (p = 0.002). An improvement was shown in the distribution of lower limb weight-bearing in a standing position, and the mean value of limb weight-bearing symmetry index was significantly lower compared to the baseline (p = 0.0001).
CONCLUSION: Integrated tactile, auditory, and visual prompting may beneficially affect post-stroke gait rehabilitation, by inducing improvements in gait pattern, symmetry, body balance, and walking speed.
PMID:42885871 | DOI:10.37190/abb/224359