This paper is in the following e-collection/theme issue:

TTRN CPH 2022: "Digital Health beyond COVID-19: Lessons Learned" (37)

Published on in Vol 9 (2023)

Preprints (earlier versions) of this paper are available at https://preprints.jmir.org/preprint/41242, first published .
Exoskeletons in the Digital Era: A Way to Improve the Level of Physical Activity Among Older Citizens

Exoskeletons in the Digital Era: A Way to Improve the Level of Physical Activity Among Older Citizens

Exoskeletons in the Digital Era: A Way to Improve the Level of Physical Activity Among Older Citizens

Authors of this article:

Pascal Madeleine1 Author Orcid Image ;   Daniel J R Christensen2 ;   Jesper Franch1 ;   Lone Svendsen2 ;   Ernst A Hansen1 ;   Hanne Hostrup2 ;   Cristina-Ioana Pirscoveanu1
Article Authors Cited by Tweetations Metrics

    Abstract

    1Sport Sciences - Performance and Technology, Department of Health Science and Technology, Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark

    2Aalborg Municipality, Aalborg, Denmark

    Corresponding Author:

    Pascal Madeleine, MSc, PhD, DSC

    Sport Sciences - Performance and Technology

    Department of Health Science and Technology

    Aalborg University

    Fredrik Bajers vej 7

    Aalborg, 9220

    Denmark

    Phone: 45 99408833

    Fax:45 98154008

    Email: pm@hst.aau.dk


    Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has had a negative impact on the level of physical activity among older citizens.

    Objective: The aim of this short paper is to set focus on the potential benefits of assistive walking devices for older citizens.

    Methods: In this feasibility study, 24 older citizens aged >65 years participated in the study. The participants answered to the following questionnaires after fulfilling a consent form: Tilburg Frailty Indicator, International Physical Activity Questionnaire, and Quality of Life. Then, physiological and biomechanical assessments were made in a laboratory setting with and without wearing an exoskeleton (aLQ, IMASEN Electrical Industrial Co). The aLQ is a passive-assistive lower-limb walking exoskeleton activated by a cam spring system designed to improve gait. After the tests, the participants were asked to answer the following questions: “Do you feel the exoskeleton is helping you to walk?” and “What is your opinion on the device?”.

    Results: The participants were community-dwelling older individuals, aged 72.6 (SD 4.5) years, and were characterized by an overall high level of physical activity of 3069 (SD 2847) metabolic equivalent–minutes per week. Their Tilburg Frailty Indicator indicated an overall frailty score of 3.5 (SD 2.5). The participants reported a Quality of Life score of 6.7 (SD 1.6) and an overall health score of 76.4 (SD 17.1). Moreover, of the 24 participants, 7 (29%) reported that carrying the tested exoskeleton did not induce any noticeable changes, and 3 (10%) reported that they walked better with the device than without.

    Conclusions: These findings are of importance in our current digital era where the COVID-19 pandemic forced municipalities and hospitals to cancel or postpone the training and rehabilitation of older citizens, resulting in a degradation of the level of physical activity and health in general. The use of assistive walking devices can be a way to improve or maintain their level of physical activity. Future studies using a prospective design should confirm that.

    Conflicts of Interest: None declared.

    iproc 2023;9:e41242

    doi:10.2196/41242

    Keywords

    gait; ageing; walking aid 

    Edited by B Dinesen; This is a non–peer-reviewed article. submitted 20.07.22; accepted 02.02.23; published 15.02.23

    Copyright

    ©Pascal Madeleine, Daniel J R Christensen, Jesper Franch, Lone Svendsen, Ernst A Hansen, Hanne Hostrup, Cristina-Ioana Pirscoveanu. Originally published in Iproceedings (https://www.iproc.org), 15.02.2023.

    This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work, first published in Iproceedings, is properly cited. The complete bibliographic information, a link to the original publication on https://www.iproc.org/, as well as this copyright and license information must be included.