86
J. Schröder et al.
starting in the first month post-stroke remain scarce.
Repetitive gait training appears feasible and safe.
Such training can lead to long-term functional impro-
vements if provided early, but these effects are small.
In sub-analyses, RAGT provided with an end-effector
appears most effective and it seems that the more
impaired patients benefit most. However, analyses on
body function level yielded neutral effects and conse-
quently the mechanisms underlying functional gains
achieved after augmented gait training remain poorly
understood. In the context of walking recovery after
stroke, this review suggests that clinical research on
early motor rehabilitation and robot-assisted training
is still in its infancy.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The author would like to thank Professor Gert Kwakkel for
scientific guidance and his support with the interpretation and
documentation of results.
The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.
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