Gait Evaluation on Parkinson’s Disease Patients Using Spontaneous Stimulus Induced by UPS-PD

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a common progressive neurodegenerative disease. It can manifest with a wide range of motor and non-motor signs. Among the most disabling PD symptoms are gait impairments and freezing of gait (FOG). External cueing is currently accepted as an effective strategy to improve gait parameters and overcome FOG. However, some patients show a weak response to external cues or even the worsening of gait under cueing condition. In this paper we propose a new walking assist robotic system UPS-PD, which employs pneumatically-actuated artificial muscle and simple control system. The working principle of UPS-PD is based on inducing spontaneous synchronization in PD patients. That allows them to maintain a stable gait pattern while walking at their own pace. UPS-PD was tested in two PD patients and in one of them a significant improvement of gait features was demonstrated. Our results suggest that UPS-PD might improve walking performance in PD patients with highly variable and asymmetric gait patterns.