Gunnell Andrew J, Sarkisian Sergei V, Hayes Heather A, Foreman K Bo, Gabert Lukas, Lenzi Tommaso
Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.
Robotics Center at the University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.
Commun Eng. 2025 Jun 7;4(1):104. doi: 10.1038/s44172-025-00440-3.
Millions of stroke survivors are affected by hemiparesis, resulting in difficulty or inability to move one side of their body. Hemiparesis severely impacts the ability of individuals to perform essential everyday activities, reducing independence and quality of life. Here we show that a powered knee exoskeleton that assists the affected knee joint using proportional electromyographic control significantly improves the ability to stand up from a seated position in eight stroke survivors. With the exoskeleton, stroke survivors stood up significantly faster (8.8% reduction in stand-up time), more symmetrically (13.7% increase in weight-bearing symmetry), and with less effort on their affected side (32% reduction in peak quadriceps muscle activation, 25% reduction in peak biological torque generation). The exoskeleton effectively supplemented the lack of strength in their affected knee, increasing the total knee torque by 59%, which more closely matched their non-affected knee. These results suggest that powered knee exoskeletons are a promising solution for enhancing stand-up ability, improving symmetry, reducing effort, and ultimately enhancing stroke survivors' mobility and quality of life.
数以百万计的中风幸存者受到偏瘫的影响，导致身体一侧难以移动或无法移动。偏瘫严重影响了个体进行基本日常活动的能力，降低了独立性和生活质量。在此我们表明，一种通过比例肌电图控制辅助受影响膝关节的动力膝关节外骨骼，显著提高了8名中风幸存者从坐姿站立的能力。借助该外骨骼，中风幸存者站立速度明显加快（站立时间减少8.8%），更加对称（负重对称性增加13.7%），且患侧用力更少（股四头肌峰值激活降低32%，生物扭矩峰值产生降低25%）。该外骨骼有效弥补了患侧膝关节力量的不足，使膝关节总扭矩增加了59%，更接近健侧膝关节。这些结果表明，动力膝关节外骨骼是增强站立能力、改善对称性、减少用力并最终提高中风幸存者行动能力和生活质量的一种很有前景的解决方案。
