Title :
The effects of long term FES-assisted walking on intrinsic and reflex dynamic stiffness in spinal cord injured patients
Author :
Mirbagheri, M.M. ; Ladouceur, M. ; Kearney, R.E. ; Barbeau, H.
Author_Institution :
Dept. of Biomed. Eng., McGill Univ., Montreal, Que., Canada
fDate :
30 Oct-2 Nov 1997
Abstract :
The effects of long term Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) assisted walking on ankle dynamic stiffness were examined in spinal cord injured persons with incomplete motor function loss (SCI-IMFL). A parallel-cascade system identification method was used to identify intrinsic and reflex contributions to dynamic ankle stiffness at different positions in both normal and SCI-IMFL subjects. Intrasubject reliability of the method was high, indicating that the method can be used to track changes in ankle mechanics with time. Subjects were evaluated before and after using FES-assisted walking for a period of at least 18 months. The results demonstrate that ankle stiffness decreased with long term FES assisted walking because of a decrease in both intrinsic and reflex stiffness
Keywords :
biocontrol; biomechanics; identification; neuromuscular stimulation; orthotics; patient rehabilitation; functional electrical stimulation; incomplete motor function loss; intrasubject reliability; intrinsic dynamic stiffness; long term FES-assisted walking; nonlinear least squares; orthotic system; parallel-cascade system identification; parametric model; reflex dynamic stiffness; rehabilitation; spinal cord injured patients; Biomedical engineering; Legged locomotion; Medical treatment; Neuromuscular stimulation; Nonlinear dynamical systems; Parametric statistics; Protocols; Spinal cord; System identification; Torque;
Conference_Titel :
Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society, 1997. Proceedings of the 19th Annual International Conference of the IEEE
Conference_Location :
Chicago, IL
Print_ISBN :
0-7803-4262-3
DOI :
10.1109/IEMBS.1997.757068
