At the end of June an important event took place, which had been awaited for more than a year by both employees and patients of Kyiv City Center for Rehabilitation of Children with Disabilities – clinical testing of the first in Ukraine exoskeleton Ekso Bionics GT manufactured in the USA.
The equipment had been purchased earlier, but unfortunately, due to COVID-19, clinical training education for physicians had to be postponed.
American company Ekso Bionics is the world leader in robotic exoskeletons. For more than 10 years, Ekso Bionics has been using the latest technologies to help people redefine their physical limitations and achieve superior results.
The lecturer of the event Dennis Veit – physical therapist, specialist in clinical training and consulting Ekso Bionics for three days of the seminar acquainted the specialists of the Center with the criteria of selection of patients for Ekso and periods of rehabilitation, in which it is possible to use exoskeleton, showed in practice the application of elements of individual rehabilitation programs for patients, as well as demonstrated the features and benefits of the equipment.
Where can the Ekso Bionics GT exoskeleton be used?
Probably everyone is familiar with the word “rehabilitation”, and many people have already encountered it more than once. Treatment, or measures aimed at restoring lost functions of the body after injuries, fractures, and strokes are called just that. The most difficult thing is rehabilitation of people with consequences after stroke, spinal cord injuries, hemiparesis and neurological diseases affecting the lower limbs and the function of walking. Many of these patients unfortunately remain confined to a wheelchair for life. An exoskeleton for rehabilitation (literally “external” skeleton) ̶ is an innovative technology that allows people with lower limb paralysis to move their legs while maintaining their torso and body balance while walking. That is, the exoskeleton helps people re-learn to walk on their own.
Features of the Ekso Bionics GT robotic exoskeleton
Ekso Bionics GT ̶ is a bionic robotic exoskeleton designed to support patients in learning to walk (developing the correct pattern and weight transfer) and reducing pathological compensatory movements.
Ekso Bionics GT is battery-powered and allows patients with weakness or paralysis of the lower limbs to stand and walk on flat surfaces. Motors power the hip and knee joints, and all movements are triggered either through specific actions of the patient or by an external controller. Ekso GT is easily adjustable for people of different heights and builds.
The device contains special Variable Assist™ software, which provides dynamic power variation (from 0 – 100%) for each side and allows the exoskeleton to be customized for each individual patient, making it possible to stand up, even for patients with severe weakness in the lower limbs. The system allows you to adjust exactly the phase of the walking process that you need.
Variable Assist promotes the involvement of patients in the rehabilitation process, challenging them to improve their abilities by combining the patient’s physical activity, assisted by the exoskeleton, to provide a complete free walking training with a physiological walking pattern. The Ekso Bionics GT allows dynamic adaptation to the patient’s needs during training. And one of the important features of exoskeleton rehabilitation is that it works even ten years after the injury and gives good results.
Benefits of the Ekso Bionics GT exoskeleton
- Patented weight relief technology: the exoskeleton design is adapted to support its own weight in an upright position, the patient works only with its own weight;
- Ankle stabilization and support system
- A software module that automatically collects and transmits system statistics and reliability data to the Ekso Bionics website, which can be accessed by the physician
- Promotes optimal hip and knee flexion angles for patients to walk safely on their own;
- Adjustable exoskeleton customization based on the size of the patient’s legs;
- The exoskeleton can be used for long periods of time, thanks to the availability of two batteries;
- Can be used in adolescents with cerebral palsy, provided they are 150 cm or more tall and have sufficient cognitive function and motor coordination.
- spinal cord injuries
- Guillain-Barré syndrome;
- MS;
- general weakness of the lower extremities, etc.
