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BACKGROUND The robotic-assisted gait training (RAGT) system has gained recognition as an innovative, effective paradigm to improve functional ambulation and activities of daily living in spinal cord injury and stroke. However, the effects of the Walkbot robotic-assisted gait training system with a specialized hip-knee-ankle actuator have never been examined in the paraplegia and quadriplegia population. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to determine the long-term effects of Walkbot training on clinical for hips and knee stiffness in individuals with paraplegia or quadriplegia. METHODS Nine adults with subacute or chronic paraplegia resulting from spinal cord injury or quadriplegia resulting from cerebral vascular accident (CVA) and/or hypoxia underwent progressive conventional gait retraining combined with the Walkbot RAGT for 5 days/week over an average of 43 sessions for 8 weeks. Clinical outcomes were measured with the Functional Ambulation Category (FAC), Modified Rankin Scale (MRS), Korean version of the Modified Barthel Index (K-MBI), Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS). Kinetic and kinematic data were collected via a built-in Walkbot program. RESULTS Wilcoxon signed-rank tests showed significant positive intervention effects on K-MBI, maximal hip flexion and extension, maximal knee flexion, active torque in the knee joint, resistive torque, and stiffness in the hip joint (P < 0.05). These findings suggest that the Walkbot RAGT was effective for improving knee and hip kinematics and the active knee joint moment while decreasing hip resistive force. These improvements were associated with functional recovery in gait, balance, mobility and daily activities. CONCLUSIONS These findings suggest that the Walkbot RAGT was effective for improving knee and hip kinematics and the active knee joint moment while decreasing hip resistive force. This is the first clinical evidence for intensive, long-term effects of the Walkbot RAGT on active or resistive moments and stiffness associated with spasticity and functional mobility in individuals with subacute or chronic paraplegia or quadriplegia who had reached a plateau in motor recovery after conventional therapy.

Background There are a few reports on the impact of central facial palsy and dysarthria on quality of life (QOL) in stroke patients. Objective To investigate the impact of central facial palsy on QOL compared with dysarthria during the chronic phase in patients with first-ever strokes. Methods This study represents an interim analysis of the Korean Stroke Cohort for Functioning and Rehabilitation study. We selected data from patients with functional independence of 0 or 1 by the modified Rankin Scale at 6 months after stroke onset, who showed an impairment only in National Institute of Health Stroke Scale items 4 (facial palsy) or 10 (dysarthria). Assessments included the European Quality of Life-5 Dimensions (EQ-5D) and the Geriatric depression scale-short form (GDS-SF). Results Data from 149 patients were selected for this analysis from 3,929 patients who were followed up at 6 months. Thirty-nine and 110 patients were classified into the facial palsy and dysarthria groups, respectively. The groups did not differ significantly in baseline characteristics or functional assessments. EQ-5D was significantly lower in the facial palsy group than in the dysarthria group at 6 months after stroke (p = 0.036). GDS-SF was significantly higher in the facial palsy group than in the dysarthria group (p = 0.005). Conclusions The results of this study revealed that central facial palsy clearly has a more negative impact on QOL than dysarthria in chronic stroke patients with functional independence.

Background Robotic-assisted gait training (RAGT) has been proposed as a novel, promising intervention paradigm to improve gait function in subacute or chronic stroke neurorehabilitation. However, the benefits of RAGT combined with conventional physical therapy for gait recovery in patients with subacute and chronic hemiparetic stroke remain unclear. Objectives The aim of the present study was to compare the effect of RAGT combine with conventional physical therapy on hip joint kinetics, kinematics, and clinical function characteristics between subacute and chronic hemiparetic stroke. Methods Seventeen patients with hemiparetic stroke (nine subacute and eight chronic patients) performed progressive RAGT (session 1, 40 min) combined with conventional physical therapy (session 1, 40 min) 5 days per week, for an average of 86 sessions over 8 weeks. The clinical outcomes included the Functional Ambulation Category (FAC), modified Rankin scale (mRS), Korean version of the modified Barthel index (K-MBI), and modified Ashworth scale, in addition to hip joint kinetics and kinematics before and after intervention. Results The mean change in active torque, resistive torque, and stiffness in the paretic hip joint did not differ significantly between the two groups. However, Cohen's effect size suggested a moderate difference between the groups in the hip flexion phase (d = 0.58, d = 0.70, and d = 0.70). The mean change in maximal hip flexion kinematics in the chronic group was significantly greater than that in the subacute group (p = 0.04, d = -0.70). The mean change in the clinical function test results between the groups was not statistically significant. However, both groups showed significantly improved FAC, mRS, and K-MBI scores. Conclusions RAGT combine with conventional physical therapy may be useful when selecting therapeutic interventions to improve the active torque, resistive torque, and stiffness in the paretic hip flexion phase in patients with chronic hemiparetic stroke who reached a plateau in the maximum locomotor recovery after conventional locomotor training.

Spontaneous spinal epidural hematoma (SSEH) is a rare space-occupying disease. The pathogenesis of SSEH is unclear, but anticoagulant therapy, arteriovenous malformation, coagulopathy, tumors and infection are risk factors. Ventral SSEH is even more rare, as the ventral sac is fixed firmly to the posterior longitudinal ligament. The authors report a very rare case, a 16-year-old previously healthy female who had repeated relapse of cervico-thoracic SSEH. This occurred three times in the ventral epidural space with subsequent syringomyelia, without structural abnormality and coagulopathy. The patient underwent conservative care twice, and two operations. The diagnosis was made by magnetic resonance imaging. In rapidly progressing SSEH, the clinician should make the diagnosis as early as possible to enable spinal decompression surgery.

The new antivirals clevudine, telbivudine and emtricitabine may be potent agents for the treatment of hepatitis B virus (HBV). However, there have been no reports on serious adverse events associated with the use of clevudine. A son and his mother both had HBV infection (ages: 27 and 47 years, respectively), and they had received antivirus treatment with clevudine (30 mg daily). They developed progressive weakness of the lower extremities and difficulty arising from the ground. Both the patients had symptoms for the previous 3 approximately 4 months in process of 14 approximately 17 months of clevudine therapy. The physical examinations showed positive Gower's sign, a decreased gait velocity and symmetrical proximal weakness (MRC grade 4/5). Their blood tests at admission revealed elevated or positive HBs Ag, HBV DNA, AST, ALT, creatine kinase, LDH, myoglobin and CK-MB. For both patients, the electrodiagnostic studies indicated myopathy and the pathologic findings of biopsied muscles revealed myositis. Drug-induced polymyositis was suspected and the clevudine was finally withdrawn. The muscle weakness and laboratory findings were improved for both patients after conservative care. We report here on the first cases of polymyositis that may have been caused by administering the new nucleoside analog clevudine for treating HBV infection.