A review of gait disorders in the elderly and neurological patients for robot-assisted training

Abstract

Purpose: Ambulation is an important objective for people with pathological gaits. Exoskeleton robots can assist these people to complete their activities of daily living. There are exoskeletons that have been presented in literature to assist the elderly and other pathological gait users. This article presents a review of the degree of support required in the elderly and neurological gait disorders found in the human population. This will help to advance the design of robot-assisted devices based on the needs of the end users.

Methods: The articles included in this review are collected from different databases including Science Direct, Springer Link, Web of Science, Medline and PubMed and with the purpose to investigate the gait parameters of elderly and neurological patients. Studies were included after considering the full texts and only those which focus on spatiotemporal, kinematic and kinetic gait parameters were selected as they are most relevant to the scope of this review. A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted.

Results: The meta-analysis report on the spatiotemporal, kinematic and kinetic gait parameters of elderly and neurological patients revealed a significant difference based on the type and level of impairment. Healthy elderly population showed deviations in the gait parameters due to age, however, significant difference is observed in the gait parameters of the neurological patients.

Conclusion: A level of agreement was observed in most of the studies however the review also noticed some controversies among different studies in the same group. The review on the spatiotemporal, kinematics and kinetic gait parameters will provide a summary of the fundamental needs of the users for the future design and development of robotic assistive devices.

• Implications for rehabilitation

• The support requirements provide the foundation for designing assistive devices.

• The findings will be crucial in defining the design criteria for robot assistive devices.

     

血液净化技术在危重患者治疗中的应用进展

近年来血液净化技术不断发展，新模式和新材料不断涌现。在多种病因导致的危重患者中，血液净化均可以发挥重要的治疗作用。特别是对于内环境严重紊乱的危重患者，血液净化已经成为重要的生命支持手段。因为连续性血液净化技术对血流动力学影响较小，在危重患者的治疗中更具有优势。免疫吸附等新技术的出现，对一些危重患者的原发病也有很好的治疗效果。但是目前还存在抗凝剂选择、容量控制等需要进一步研究的问题。     

眼部穴位按摩联合刮痧护理在老年干眼症患者中的应用

目的探讨眼部穴位按摩联合刮痧护理在老年干眼症患者中的应用效果。方法选取2018年3月-2019年4月收治的62例老年干眼症患者,按随机数字表法分为对照组和观察组,各31例。对照组采取常规的护理方法,观察组采取眼部穴位按摩联合刮痧的方法。观察并分析2组患者护理后的临床效果及角膜荧光素染色(FL)评分、泪液分泌试验长度(Schirmer)、泪膜破裂时间(BUT)。结果观察组的总有效率93.55%(29/31)相比对照组70.97%(22/31)高,护理后FL评分相比对照组低,Schirmer、BUT均比对照组高,差异有统计学意义(P<0.05)。结论眼部穴位按摩联合刮痧的护理方法用于老年干眼症患者中效果明显,有助于减轻病情。     

Effects of exercise interventions on the functional status of acutely hospitalised older adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BackgroundAcute hospitalisation can have adverse effects in older adults, notably functional decline. We aimed to summarize evidence on the effects of exercise interventions in acutely hospitalised older adults.MethodsRelevant articles were systematically searched (PubMed, Web of Science, Rehabilitation & Sports Medicine Source, and EMBASE) until 19^th March 2020. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of in-hospital exercise interventions versus usual care conducted in older adults (>60yrs) hospitalised for an acute medical condition were included. Methodological quality of the studies was assessed with the PEDro scale. Primary outcomes included functional independence and physical performance. Intervention effects were also assessed for other major outcomes (length of hospital stay, incidence of readmission, and mortality). A meta-analysis was conducted when ≥3 studies analysed the same outcome.ResultsFifteen studies from 12 RCTs (n = 1748) were included. Methodological quality of the studies was overall high. None of the studies reported any adverse event related to the intervention. Exercise interventions improved functional independence at discharge (standardized mean difference [SMD] = 0.64, 95% confidence interval = 0.19–1.08) and 1–3 months post-discharge (SMD = 0.29, 95%CI = 0.13–0.43), as well as physical performance (SMD = 0.57, 95%CI = 0.18–0.95). No between-group differences were found for length of hospital stay or risk of readmission or mortality (all p > 0.05).ConclusionsIn-hospital supervised exercise interventions seem overall safe and effective for improving – or attenuating the decline of – functional independence and physical performance in acutely hospitalised older adults. The clinical relevance of these findings remains to be confirmed in future research.     

Pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic profiling of imipenem in patients admitted to an intensive care unit in India: A nonrandomized,cross-sectional,analytical, open-labeled study

Results:The difference in the plasma imipenem concentration between the gastrointestinal and the nongastrointestinal groups was significant at 2 h (P = 0.015) following drug dosing; while the difference was significant between the skin/cellulitis and nonskin/cellulitus groups at 2 h (P = 0.008), after drug dosing. The imipenem levels were above the MIC and 5 times the MIC for the isolated organism in 96.67% and 50% of the patients, respectively.Conclusions:The pharmacokinetic profile of imipenem does not vary according to the locus of an infection in critically ill patients. Imipenem, 3 g/day intermittent dosing, maintains a plasma concentration which is adequate to treat most infections encountered in patients admitted to an ICU. However, a change in the dosing regimen is suggested for patients infected with organisms having MIC values above 4 mg/L.     

Feeling an outsider left in uncertainty – a phenomenological study on the experiences of older hospital patients

This paper starts from a care ethical perspective on care and reports on a phenomenological study into older patients’ experiences of hospitalisation. Although hospital care for older patients is at the centre of attention, questions what is at stake and what defines quality of care are rarely discussed with a view to the perspective of older patients themselves. The qualitative observational method of shadowing was used. Ten patients of 75 years old or older were shadowed from admission until discharge. The reflective lifeworld approach, based on phenomenological philosophy, was used to analyse the collected data. For the older patients included in the study, the essential meaning of hospitalisation can be described as feeling an outsider left in uncertainty. The word ‘left’ reveals how hospitalisation is experienced as a solitary struggle with various uncertainties that are related both to the hospital environment and to the patient's personal situation. The essential meaning is composed of the following three constituents: (i) staying in an inhospitable place, (ii) feeling constrained and (iii) experiencing disruption. The busy walking back and forth of care professionals and the functional character of involvement, restrain older patients from participating and make them feel abandoned. Feeling constrained reveals the feelings brought on by the ageing body which are emphasised by hospitalisation but often neglected by hospital staff. The failure of healthcare professionals to recognise and respond to who older patients are aside from their illness exacerbate the experience of disruptions. To improve care, hospital staff must be more sensitive to older patients’ uncertainties. Also, hospital staff should provide older patients with understandable information and explanation which besides offering patients the possibility to feel involved, meets their need for recognition.