A New Approach to Retrain Gait in Stroke Patients Through Body Weight Support and Treadmill Stimulation

Abstract

Background and Purpose —A new gait training strategy for patients with stroke proposes to support a percentage of the patient’s body weight while retraining gait on a treadmill. This research project intended to compare the effects of gait training with body weight support (BWS) and with no body weight support (no-BWS) on clinical outcome measures for patients with stroke. Methods —One hundred subjects with stroke were randomized to receive one of two treatments while walking on a treadmill: 50 subjects were trained to walk with up to 40% of their body weight supported by a BWS system with overhead harness (BWS group), and the other 50 subjects were trained to walk bearing full weight on their lower extremities (no-BWS group). Treatment outcomes were assessed on the basis of functional balance, motor recovery, overground walking speed, and overground walking endurance. Results —After a 6-week training period, the BWS group scored significantly higher than the no-BWS group for functional balance ( P =0.001), motor recovery ( P =0.001), overground walking speed ( P =0.029), and overground walking endurance ( P =0.018). The follow-up evaluation, 3 months after training, revealed that the BWS group continued to have significantly higher scores for overground walking speed ( P =0.006) and motor recovery ( P =0.039). Conclusions —Retraining gait in patients with stroke while a percentage of their body weight was supported resulted in better walking abilities than gait training while the patients were bearing their full weight. This novel gait training strategy provides a dynamic and integrative approach for the treatment of gait dysfunction after stroke.