CompletedNot Applicable

Restoring Walking With a Powered Exoskeleton After Spinal Cord Injury

Canada12 participantsStarted 2014-06

Plain-language summary

Powered exoskeletons have emerged recently, promising to offer walking to individuals with severe spinal cord injury who are unable to walk. We will use the ReWalk exoskeleton to train walking in individuals with chronic, severe spinal cord injury (SCI). We will determine the characteristics of individuals who most benefit from such training, and identify the neuroplasticity induced by the training. We will further determine the feasibility of the ReWalk for home and community ambulation.

Who can participate

Age range18 Years – 70 Years

SexALL

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AI-rewrites the medical criteria so a patient or caregiver can understand them. Always confirm with the trial site.

Inclusion Criteria: * non-progressive spinal cord injury ≥1 year post-injury * Body height between 5'3" and 6'4" * Body weight ≤82 kg * Uses wheelchair as primary mode of mobility * If able to walk, walks at ≤0.4 m/s * Arm strength sufficient to control forearm crutches * Agree to attend intensive training of 1.5 hr/day, 4 days/wk for 14 weeks, plus testing pre and post training of approximately 2 weeks each Exclusion Criteria: * Contractures at the hip, knee or ankle that interferes with fitting into the ReWalk * Fractures within the last 2 years * Osteoporosis in the legs (t-score ≤-3.0) * Severe postural hypotension * Severe spasticity that interferes with use of the ReWalk * Active pressure sores * Pregnancy * Severe head injury * Conditions that preclude intensive exercise (such as high blood pressure) * Presence of conditions contraindicated for transcranial magnetic stimulation

What they're measuring

Physiological Cost Index (PCI) Ratio

Timeframe: End of training:12-14 weeks from baseline

Trial details

NCT IDNCT02322125

SponsorUniversity of Alberta

Sponsor typeOTHER

Study typeINTERVENTIONAL

Primary completion2018-08-20

Results submitted2019-12-05