Pilot Clinical Trails

An ankle rehabilitation patient performs exercises on the 'Rutgers Ankle' during proof-of-concept patient trails at UMDNJ (Click to see a larger image)

Rehabilitation of Musculoskeletal Injuries The system underwent pilot clinical trials in an outpatient clinic during the summer of 2000. The goals of the pilot tests were to determine how well the current design of the interface worked in a clinical setting and to provide preliminary evidence of whether patients benefited from incorporating the "Rutgers Ankle" into their rehabilitation program. The three patients participating in the study showed improvements in range of motion, torque generation capacity, and ankle mechanical work over six rehabilitation sessions. See (Deutsch et al., 2001a) above for more information. Post-Stroke Rehabilitation In (Deutsch et al., 2001b), a case study is presented of a patient nine-months post-stroke using the "Rutgers Ankle." Results showed that over six rehabilitation sessions the patient improved on clinical measures of strength and endurance, which corresponded well with torque and power output increases measured by the Rutgers Ankle. There were also substantial improvements in task accuracy and coordination during the simulation and the patient’s walking and stair climbing ability. Proof-of-Concept Trials Proof-of-concept patient trials were conducted at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ) in 1999. We were able to successfully use the device with a diverse group of patients who responded favorably to the experience. We were also able to record performance data for displacement, force, and torque. See (Girone et al., 2000) for more information.