Meet the Lokomat: A Machine Built to Increase Mobility
The Stephen A. Orthwein Center offers an array of fully accessible, state-of-the art equipment. One of our most popular attractions is the Lokomat®, a gait training robot-assisted therapy machine that may be used with 1:1 training with an adaptive exercise specialist.
If you are interested in Lokomat training and exercise, we invite you to read this blog to learn more about the Lokomat and the benefits it can bring to those who use it.
What is the Lokomat?
Created by Hocoma, the Lokomat is a robot-assisted gait rehabilitation machine that simulates the motion of walking. It promotes robot-assisted therapy that increases the strength of lower body muscles and improves the range of motion of joints including the ankles, knees and hips.
When using the Lokomat, a robotic exoskeleton is strapped to a person’s legs while they are suspended over a treadmill system by a harness. The robotics physically move a person’s legs in patterns similar to everyday walking. From there, an adaptive exercise specialist can control:
How fast someone will walk
How much body weight a person can support
How much assistance the robotics give a person’s legs
Fine tune one’s gait cycle to promote a normal gait pattern
Additionally, the machine includes a television that displays virtual reality games to increase both performance and guide participants toward specific milestones.
Who can use the Lokomat?
Lokomat training helps those who need gait training, upward mobility training or seek additional lower extremity movement. The Lokomat may benefit those with spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injury, stroke, cerebral palsy, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis and additional conditions where there is limited or no lower body movement.
For example, if you or a loved one has cerebral palsy, the Lokomat may help improve muscle rigidity, balance and involuntary movements like ataxia.
What are the long-term physical benefits of using the Lokomat?
Lokomat training offers many benefits to those who have moderate to severe difficulties with walking and functional mobility. Some of the well-known benefits of this machine include:
Provides unloading of the individual’s body weight
Enables upright posture
Improves joint stiffness and range of motion
Improves axatic movements
Restores gait
Strengthens muscles for individuals with lower extremity weakness
Additionally, the Lokomat gives our adaptive exercise specialists the opportunity to tailor robotic controls to your specific needs. Specialists can monitor the speed of the treadmill and exoskeleton, target specific joint movements and select augmented reality games that challenge gait patterns and overall performance.
Ready to Try the Lokomat?
If you are looking for specialized gait training or ways to incorporate lower body movement after a spinal cord injury, the Lokomat is available for 1:1 training sessions at the Orthwein Center.
Contact us to schedule your Lokomat training sessions with our team or to learn more about the adaptive equipment we have within our gym.
