Ankle-targeted exosuit resistance increases paretic propulsion in people post-stroke.
Krithika Swaminathan, Franchino Porciuncula, Sungwoo Park and 7 others
PMID 37391851WHAT IT FOUND
A soft exosuit resisting the paretic ankle increased propulsion during walking and left immediate after-effects after removal.
Higher resistance produced larger gains without compensatory movement from the hip, knee, or non-paretic leg.
Key findings
01Participants significantly increased peak paretic propulsion during active resistance at all tested force magnitudes.
02Immediate after-effects of increased propulsion persisted after resistance removal, specifically at medium and high force levels.
03Higher resistance magnitudes led to larger propulsion after-effects without evidence of compensatory loading on the non-paretic limb or proximal joints.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The study included only nine participants, limiting generalisability. Participants were high-functioning ambulators with a mean speed over 0.85 m/s, so results do not apply to those with more severe mobility impairments. The study was a single-session pilot measuring immediate after-effects, not long-term learning or functional outcomes. Explicit verbal instructions to push hard were given, so it is unclear if the device alone would produce the same effect. One participant did not complete all conditions, and some data were excluded due to technical issues.
Declared interests
The study was funded by the National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, and Harvard University. No conflicts of interest regarding commercial entities were declared.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the immediate after-effects as evidence of long-term motor learning or functional recovery. The study measured biomechanical changes in a single session for a small group of high-functioning survivors, not clinical outcomes like walking speed or independence over time.