RehaWalk® - learning to walk again!
The treadmill-assisted zebris RehaWalk® system is designed for the analysis and treatment of gait disorders in neurological, orthopedic and geriatric rehabilitation. The training can be carried out when using an unweighting system and thus also allows for patients who are suffering from severe functional limitations to commence therapy even at an early stage. The technological possibilities of RehaWalk® offer a complete adaptation to the patient's needs: from patients in wheelchairs over those with reduced mobility to the ones being capable of walking – the components can be adjusted to any application orientating themselves at the therapist. RehaWalk® thus is positioned between the robot-assisted locomotion therapy and the manual gait therapy.
Your benefits of the RehaWalk® concept at a glance:
- Supports therapists, doctors, coaches and podiatrists in gait analysis and therapy
- Possible fields of application: rehabilitation after stroke, with Parkinson’s disease, spinal cord syndrome, arthrosis, hip and knee joint endoprostheses, exoprostheses, torn ligaments, bone fracture, muscular injuries
- Trains cognition, coordination, postural control and sensorimotor functions for improved fall prevention and daily life
- Automation of the gait through high number of step repetitions
- Possibility to support and correct the gait through intuitive software suite FDM
- Gait analysis through time synchronous video recording and pressure distribution measurement
- Gait training through visual and acoustic cueing as well as virtual feedback
- Dual task training in virtual surroundings with coordinative and cognitive tasks
- Weight relief through optional arm supports and un-weighting system
- Preventing the patient from falling during training through safety
With the treadmill systems the following additional possibilities arise:
- Automation of the aisle through a high number of step repetitions
- gait training through virtual feedback
- Dual-task training in a virtual environment with coordinative and cognitive tasks
- Weight relief through optional armrests
- Protection of the patient during the training with a crash bar
zebris FDM evaluation software
After an initial gait analysis to assess the patient’s status quo, the core element of RehaWalk® is the gait training through dynamic visual cueing. Using dynamic visual cueing the therapist instructs the patient to learn walking consciously again. During therapy the ideal gait pattern is projected onto the treadmill’s surface. Patients are then instructed to position their feet as accurately as possible within the projected surface area. The success report documents the adherence to the target settings. Therapists have the possibility to flexibly adapt the training parameters any time to the patient’s capability. For optimal training control two gait analyses are compared – before and after a training cycle.
The high number of step repetitions when training on the treadmill support the automation of the gait and thus can have positive effects on cognition and coordination. The gait training through visual cueing can already be carried out at an early stage of therapy in order to symmetrize and rhythmize the gait pattern as well as to increase step length.
Balancing on stones and wooden footbridges or avoiding falling rocks – the course through the virtual forest in the Allgäu landscape undergo patients while observing their own footprints on the treadmill. The training on the virtual forest path requires a constant variation of steps – as it would be when walking in daily life. This trains postural control as well as coordination. Crossings and side paths create new training scenarios. Different modules provide that the training can be adapted individually to the patient’s needs.
During dual task training motor and cognitive skills are simultaneously demanded. The patient solves simple perceptual and memory tasks as well as arithmetic problems while walking. Thus, reaction time and attentiveness are improved while supporting automated walking at the same time. In the course of the training, the level of difficulty can be increased and obstacles be added.
Optimal integration in existing therapy surroundings
Clinics, medical practices and institutions benefit from the modular structure of the RehaWalk® concept. Depending on the individual requirements and needs, different technologies can be configured optimally to fit the most diverse applications. A particular advantage of RehaWalk® is the easy retrofitting, thus preparing specific, already existing treadmill systems for the future. The system’s basis forms the wide range of tried and tested medically approved h/p/cosmos treadmill systems.
