Toward a hybrid exoskeleton for crouch gait in children with cerebral palsy: neuromuscular electrical stimulation for improved knee extension.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation (NMES) has been utilized for many years in cerebral palsy (CP) with limited success despite its inherent potential for improving muscle size and/or strength, inhibiting or reducing spasticity, and enhancing motor performance during functional activities such as gait. While surface NMES has been shown to successfully improve foot drop in CP and stroke, correction of more complex gait abnormalities in CP such as flexed knee (crouch) gait remains challenging due to the level of stimulation needed for the quadriceps muscles that must be balanced with patient tolerability and the ability to deliver NMES assistance at precise times within a gait cycle.

Methods

This paper outlines the design and evaluation of a custom, noninvasive NME

SUBMITTER: Shideler BL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7469320 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature