Parawalker: energy cost of walking

Relative oxygen cost (ml/kg/m) was compared in five paraplegic subjects (4 children, 1 adult) while wearing a reciprocating gait orthosis (RGO) and Parawalker. An Oxylog was used to record oxygen consumption while the subjects ambulated during steady state. Although all of the subjects trained and used the orthoses for varying amounts of time, the trend from these data shows that the Parawalker enables a more energy efficient gait. On the average the oxygen cost while using the Parawalker was 27% less compared to the RGO. The reductions in oxygen cost ranged from 12 to 42%. Following this trend of greater efficiency, the subjects ambulated 33% faster (on the average) with the Parawalker than with the RGO. These preliminary results indicate that the Parawalker appears to be a more efficient orthosis for level ambulation in the paraplegic population.