Validating attentive locomotion training using interactive treadmill: an fNIRS study
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(2018) 15:122
SHORT REPORT
Open Access
Validating attentive locomotion training using interactive treadmill: an fNIRS study Seunghue Oh, Minsu Song and Jonghyun Kim*
Abstract Background: Existing treadmill-based locomotion training, which has been used for gait function recovery, still has limitations, such as less attentive training. Interactive treadmills (ITMs) were developed to overcome these limitations, but it has not yet been verified that ITMs can make the user pay closer attention to walk training. Methods: An experimental comparison between ITMs and conventional treadmills was conducted by measuring the level of the user’s attention using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). To consider the effect of task complexity on the subject’s attention, we provided two (slow and fast) speed conditions for walking on both treadmills. Results: Both the cortical activity images and oxygenated hemoglobin (oxyHb) changes showed that the level of attention to walking induced by the ITM was significantly higher than that induced by the conventional treadmill. We found that the walking speed on the ITM also affected the level of attention. Conclusion: ITM-based locomotion training would be a promising solution to the limitations of existing treadmill-based locomotion training currently used to improve gait function recovery. Trial registration: DGIST-HR-150309-03-02. Registered 01 March 2015. Keywords: Gait training, Attention, Task complexity, Walking speed, Interactive treadmill (ITM), fNIRS
Background Recovery of gait function is a typical goal of rehabilitation [1, 2], and thus gait training for patients with impaired gait has been widely used in clinical practice [2–5]. Although the ultimate goal of gait training is to improve overground walking ability [6], gait training has mainly been conducted on treadmills [5, 7]. This is because treadmills can safely and consistently provide task specific training in a limited space [8, 9], and treadmill walking is not significantly different from overground walking with respect to kinematic and kinetic aspects [10, 11]. However, treadmill-based locomotion training (TBLT) still has limitations on both physical and mental activity. Limitations on physical activity
The kinematic and kinetic similarities between treadmill walking and overground walking were only verified with the treadmill belt turning at a constant speed [10, 11]. * Correspondence: [email protected] Department of Robotics Engineering, DGIST (Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology), 333 Techno Jungang-daero, Daegu 42988, Republic of Korea
Since existing TBLT is mainly focused on walking at a constant speed [1, 5], walking on the treadmill can be regarded as similar to walking overground at a constant speed. However, it is clear that treadmill walking is a different physical activity compared with actual overground walking in which users decide their walking speed by themselves [8]. Limitations on mental activity
It is well-known that walking with a normal gait is a highly automated sk
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