CONCURRENT VALIDITY AND TEST-RETEST RELIABILITY OF THE WALKBOT-K SYSTEM FOR ROBOTIC GAIT TRAINING

摘要

While the Walkbot-K robotic-assisted gait training systems have rapidly gained widespread acceptance for pediatric locomotor training in children with cerebral palsy, the validity and reliability for the Walkbot-K system have not been well established. The aim of this study is to investigate the validity and test-retest reliability of the innovative exoskeletal Walkbot-K system which is designed to help the active development and learning of fundamental locomotor skills in children with locomotor impairments. The electrogoniometer was used concurrently to compare the sagittal kinematic angular displacement data with that of the Walkbot-K system as a reference standard measure. Neuromechanical data obtained from kinematic measurement produced an excellent validity ([Formula: see text]). The test-retest reliability for kinematic knee angle data showed a remarkable consistency ([Formula: see text]). This study provides the first compelling evidence of the children’s robotic gait-assisted Walkbot-K system’s validity and reliability, indicating that the system is a highly valid and reliable robotic-assisted gait training system to evaluate and treat locomotor dysfunction.