LEAP a New Overground Body Weight Support Robot: Usability Trial

Summary

People with central nervous system disorders such as spinal cord injury, stroke, cerebral palsy, Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, etc… often have impaired lower extremity function that limits activities of daily life and independence. Different body-weight support systems have been developed to facilitate the rehabilitation process by compensating for the user's residual abilities. However, studies on weight-supported gait training on a treadmill have failed to show superiority over conventional rehabilitation programs for spinal cord injury and stroke. A recent study by the group around Grégoire Courtine showed that body-weight support systems that provide assistance only in the vertical direction disrupt the production of gait and balance, suggesting that current practices may even be detrimental for relearning to walk. For the past year, the Clinique Romande de Réadaptation (CRR) worked together with the G-Lab at EPFL and G-Therapeutics on a new robot platform specifically developed to provide adjustable trunk support along four independent degrees of freedom (LEAP). The investigators were able to draw on their long-term experience, which consists of different body weight support training systems for stroke and spinal cord injury. This knowledge, combined with the input of our therapists and physicians and the specific requirements for people with neurological/musculoskeletal disorders, has resulted in a design that can provide adjustable bodyweight support during over-ground locomotion, treadmill, stairs training, standing up and sitting down and for support during the training of activities of daily living.

The scope of this study is to examine how well the robot can be used for rehabilitation therapy in everyday clinical practice. This includes, among other things, technical aspects such as the handling of the hardware, the adaptability of the robot to the patient, and the safety during operation (such as the fall prevention). Various patient-specific aspects will also be evaluated e.g. comfort, positioning, or motivation of the patient. This study also aims to evaluate the software with the various support modes, operating options, and the user interface of the LEAP.

Conditions

• Spinal Cord Injuries
• Cerebral Palsy
• Parkinson Disease
• Multiple Sclerosis
• Stroke
• People With Impaired Lower Extremity Function

Interventions

DEVICE

Therapist LEAP session feedback

A standard therapy session is being performed with a participant with the LEAP body-weight support robot. Subsequently, the therapist is answering a questionnaire to assess the clinical applicability of the robot. An observer will assess with a questionnaire whether use errors occurred during the session.

DEVICE

Participant LEAP session feedback

A standard therapy session is being performed with a participant inside the LEAP body-weight support robot. Subsequently, the participant is answering a questionnaire to assess the comfort of the robot.

DEVICE

LEAP risk control validation

The therapist rates the risk control measurements of the LEAP robot with a questionnaire, during a session with a member of the investigational team.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Clinique Romande de Readaptation

  lead NETWORK

Principal Investigators

• Urs Keller, PhD · Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne

Study Design

Allocation

NA

Purpose

OTHER

Masking

NONE

Model

SINGLE_GROUP

Eligibility

Min Age

5 Years

Max Age

80 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2018-01-01

Primary Completion

2018-04-30

Completion

2018-04-30

Countries

• Switzerland

Study Locations