HealthSouth is doing more than offering the latest healthcare technologies—it's creating them. With the AutoAmbulator (TM), HealthSouth brings cutting-edge technology into the rehabilitation process. The AutoAmbulator is an innovative therapeutic device designer to help rehabilitate patients who experience difficulty walking.
"Gait training on a treadmill with BWS is an effective approach because it results in better locomotor abilities."
-A new approach to Retrain Gait Patients Through Body-Weight Support and Treadmill Simulation |
Patients with gait disorders often experience problems with balance, coordination and posture. An abnormal walking pattern requires more energy and often results in decreased functional ability for even the simplest activities in daily life. For those with a walking impairment, the AutoAmbulator may help advance their rehabilitation process.
The AutoAmbulator is a sophisticated treadmill device unparalleled in its ability to help patients replicate normal walking patterns. Using the therapeutic concept of body weight-supported ambulation and robotics, the AutoAmbulator simulates normal walking motion.
Whether an individual has been recently injured or has been unable to walk for years, the AutoAmbulator may be used to improve function. Patients referred to The Rehabilitation Institute of St. Louis for treatment as a result of a gait disorder have the opportunity to ambulate in a safe environment sooner than they would in a traditional rehabilitation program.
The Food and Drug Administration in 2002 granted HealthSouth permission to begin using the AutoAmbulator. Designed with numerous safety features, the AutoAmbulator holds a patient upright while robotic braces move the patient's legs across a treadmill. Intelligent programs power the AutoAmbulator through its integrated computer system, while sensors track numerous functions, continuously monitoring and adjusting power and speed according to each patient's physical requirements.
- Allows the patient to contribute to the movement, but provides remaining force to generate the movement
- Synchronized robotic legs allow patients to walk safely, utilizing normal gait patterns
- Designed to allow therapists to safely adjust the amount of weight bearing to each patient's individual rehabilitation plan
- Speed of walking can be varied to patient's tolerance and gradually increased to reproduce gait patterns that simulate normal walking
- To eliminate risk of injury, safety features shut down when an adverse event occurs, such as a severe spasm or if the patient's foot improperly strikes the treadmill
- Neurological conditions:
- Cerebral vascular accident (stroke)
- Spinal cord injury (SCI) - complete and incomplete
- Traumatic brain injury
- Multiple sclerosis
- Parkinson's disease
- Other neurological conditions that result in gait abnormality
- Orthopedic conditions that result in gait abnormality
- Patients who are debilitated from deconditioning or prolonged illness
