Feasibility and Efficacy of Home-Based Functional Electrical Stimulation and Task-Specific Training in Adults With Chronic Stroke
University of Illinois at Chicago
Summary
This project will examine the feasibility, safety and effect of home-based functional electrical stimulation (FES) applied to different lower limb muscles in combination with task-specific training on gait, balance and mobility in adults with chronic stroke. 30 individuals with chronic stroke will first undergo initial screening and baseline walking, mobility, balance and strength assessments in the laboratory. After determining their eligibility for the study, they will undergo 12-weeks of home-based FES and task-specific training. Following the initial screening (week 1) and pre-intervention assessment (week 2), participants will be trained in the lab for 6 sessions (week 3-4) for a FES home program and then given a FES home kit (FES device and an android tablet). Participants will then undergo home-training for 2 weeks (week 5-6) followed by mid-training assessment (week 7). Again, participants will undergo 4-weeks of home training (week 8-11) and final assessment at the end of training (week 12). This project has the following specific aims: Aim 1: To investigate the feasibility, safety and efficacy of 12-weeks of home-based FES and task-specific training in adults with chronic stroke. Aim 2: To examine the effect of 12-weeks of home-based FES and task-specific training on mobility, gait and balance (anticipatory and reactive balance) in adults with chronic stroke.
Description
BACKGROUND/SCIENTIFIC RATIONALE: Functional impairment after a stroke often includes slowed gait velocity and increased fall risk attributed to foot drop (the inability to dorsiflex the ankle during the swing phase of gait) and lower limb muscle weakness. Damage in the motor cortex or corticospinal tract often results in significant, persistent distal muscle weakness including the sensorimotor control of the ankle joint, typically because of a combination of weakness of the agonist ankle dorsiflexor muscles and spasticity of the antagonist plantarflexor muscle. This results in slower and abnor…