Effect of the use of a body weight-supported walker on gait parameters in hemiplegic stroke patients.
Hiroo Koshisaki, Shota Nagai
PMID 34083884WHAT IT FOUND
With 25% body weight supported in a walker, 19 hemiplegic stroke patients walked faster, with longer strides and more symmetrical steps than with their usual walking aid.
This was a single supported walk, not evidence that training improved walking.
Key findings
01Gait speed was 0.41 m/s with the BWS walker and 0.21 m/s during normal walking.
02Cadence was 77.0 steps/min with the BWS walker and 54.7 steps/min during normal walking, and stride length was 0.62 m with the walker and 0.45 m during normal walking.
03Step-time symmetry ratio was 1.66 with the BWS walker and 2.47 during normal walking, stride-time variability was 7.39% with the walker and 10.86% during normal walking, and anteroposterior stride-time regularity was 0.36 with the walker and 0.32 during normal walking with p=0.3321.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The study measured one 10 m walk normally and one 10 m walk with the BWS walker, so it does not show that repeated training with the walker changes walking. The authors state it is unclear whether patients can transfer the gait learned through BWS-walker walking exercise to normal walking. Only patients who could walk at least 16 m were included, so the findings may not apply to patients who cannot walk that distance. The sample was 19 patients, and the paper does not report randomisation or blinding. The paper reports gait parameters only, not activities of daily living, falls, or quality of life.
Declared interests
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that BWS walker training improves a patient's independent walking outside the walker. The study compared a single 10 m walk with the walker to a single 10 m normal walk, and the authors state transfer to normal walking is unclear.