Sale et al., “Robot-assisted walking training for individuals with Parkinson’s disease: a pilot randomized controlled trial” BMC Neurology (2013)
In a randomized controlled trial investigating the effects of end-effector robotic gait training on 20 individuals with idiopathic Parkinson’s disease, analysis showed a statistically significant improvement in gait index in favor of the experimental group when compared to the control group (T0 versus T1). In particular, the statistical analysis of primary outcome (gait speed) showed statistically significant improvements for the EG as well as for step and stride length. No statistically significant improvements on the CG were found. The simplicity of treatment, the lack of side effects, and the positive results from patient support the recommendation to extend the use of this approach.