Gait trainer

A gait trainer is a wheeled device that assists a person who is unable to walk independently to learn or relearn to walk safely and efficiently as part of gait training. Gait trainers are intended for children or adults with physical disabilities, to provide the opportunity to improve walking ability. A gait trainer offers both unweighting support and postural alignment to enable gait practice. It functions as a support walker and provides more assistance for balance and weight-bearing, than does a traditional rollator walker, or a walker with platform attachments. It also provides opportunities to stand and to bear weight in a safe, supported position.

Various movement disorders can result in the inability to walk independently, necessitating the use of a gait trainer. Such motor disability may be due to a medical condition from childhood, such as cerebral palsy, spina bifida, or other developmental disabilities. Or, walking impairment may be due to a later injury or illness, such as a traumatic brain injury, incomplete spinal cord injury or stroke. Regardless of the cause of disability, the child or adult may learn to walk, or recover the ability to walk, through walking practice. Recent discoveries in the field of neuroplasticity indicate the human potential for improvement in motor skills through activity-based therapy, despite neural damage from condition or injury. Although total independence in gait may not be achieved in every case, significant gains can be made in muscle strength and neuromotor control for walking, through locomotor training.

One of the first gait trainers for use by children with developmental disabilities was developed in the mid 1980s for use with the MOVE Curriculum, by a special education teacher in California, Linda Bidabe, in collaboration with others at the Blair Learning Center. Since that time, pediatric gait trainer design has evolved and been refined, and several manufacturers have developed quality gait trainers.

In adult rehabilitation, gait training is traditionally performed initially within parallel bars as the most stable assistive device. As walking improves, a patient can progress to a walker, crutches, bilateral canes or a single cane. This gait training typically occurs during physical therapy sessions. The more recent development of body-weight support gait training, such as over a treadmill, can enable considerably more walking practice with less strain to the therapist, when compared to traditional gait training.

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