Article

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of overground bionic ambulation with
variable assistance on cardiorespiratory and metabolic responses in persons with
motor-incomplete spinal cord injury. DESIGN: Case series. SUBJECTS: Four
participants with chronic, motor-incomplete spinal cord injury. METHODS: Subjects
completed a maximal graded exercise test on an arm-ergometer and 3 6-min bouts of
overground bionic ambulation using different modes of assistance, i.e. Maximal,
Adaptive, Fixed. Cardiorespiratory (oxygen consumption) and metabolic (caloric
expenditure and substrate utilization) measures were taken using a mobile
metabolic cart at each overground bionic ambulation assistance. RESULTS:
Cardiorespiratory responses ranged from low (24% VO2peak) for the least impaired
and fittest individual to supramaximal (124% VO2peak) for the participant with
the largest impairments and the lowest level of fitness. Different overground
bionic ambulation assistive modes elicited small (3-8% VO2peak) differences in
cardiorespiratory responses for 3 participants. One participant had a large (28%
VO2peak) difference in cardiorespiratory responses to different modes of
overground bionic ambulation. Metabolic responses mostly tracked closely with
cardiorespiratory responses. Total energy expenditure ranged from 1.39 to 7.17
kcal/min. Fat oxidation ranged from 0.00 to 0.17 g/min across participants and
different overground bionic ambulation modes. CONCLUSION: Overground bionic
ambulation with variable assistance can substantially increase cardiorespiratory
and metabolic responses; however, these responses vary widely across participants
and overground bionic ambulation modes.

Langue : ANGLAIS