Robotic-Assisted Gait Rehabilitation

A special issue of Bioengineering (ISSN 2306-5354). This special issue belongs to the section "Biosignal Processing".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 March 2027 | Viewed by 629

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Guest Editor
Department of Physical Therapy, University of Kyungdong, Wonju-si 26495, Gangwon-do, Republic of Korea
Interests: stroke; rehabilitation; robot; movement; gait; neurorehabilitation; physical therapy; extracorporeal shock wave therapy (ESWT); proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF)
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Gait impairment is a common and clinically significant problem in individuals with neurological, musculoskeletal, and age-related conditions. Because reduced gait ability is closely associated with decreased functional independence, limited participation, and poorer quality of life, effective rehabilitation strategies remain an important area of research and clinical practice. Robotic-assisted gait rehabilitation has received increasing attention as a therapeutic approach that may support repetitive, task-specific, and measurable gait training while also enabling more precise control of therapeutic input and objective monitoring of patient performance.

This Special Issue, “Robotic-Assisted Gait Rehabilitation”, aims to provide a focused platform for current research examining the development, application, and evaluation of robotic technologies for gait rehabilitation. We welcome studies addressing the design and validation of robotic gait devices, control algorithms, assist-as-needed systems, biomechanical and physiological assessment, sensor-based monitoring, and data-driven approaches to gait analysis. Contributions that investigate intervention efficacy, mechanisms of motor recovery, patient-specific adaptation, and the integration of robotic systems into clinical rehabilitation are also within scope.

Submissions may include original research, review articles, technical reports, methodological studies, and clinical investigations involving populations such as individuals with stroke, spinal cord injury, Parkinson’s disease, cerebral palsy, orthopedic disorders, and older adults with mobility limitations. We particularly encourage studies examining feasibility, safety, usability, treatment dose, outcome measurement, and comparative rehabilitation approaches.

The purpose of this Special Issue is to support the exchange of evidence and methodological advances in robotic-assisted gait rehabilitation and to contribute to a clearer understanding of how engineering innovations can be translated into meaningful functional outcomes in rehabilitation practice.

Guest Editor Assistant:
Name: Yong-Hwa Park
Affiliation: IM Rehabilitation Hospital, 2140, Cheongnam-ro, Seowon-gu, Chungcheongbuk-do, Re-public of Korea
Website: https://sciprofiles.com/profile/3472296?utm_source=mdpi.com&utm_medium=website&utm_campaign=avatar_name
E-mail: rmsid0245@naver.com
Interests: stroke rehabilitation; robot-assisted gait training (RAGT); gait rehabilitation; Parkinson’s disease; stroke; neurorehabilitation

Prof. Dr. Jung-Ho Lee
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • robot
  • gait
  • rehabilitation
  • engineering
  • exoskeleton
  • gait analysis
  • functional activity
  • motor recovery
  • wearable technology

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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17 pages, 2375 KB  
Systematic Review
Effects of Gait Training with Lower-Limb Robotic Exoskeletons and Exoskeleton-Type Devices on Gait Symmetry and Gait Speed in Patients with Stroke: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
by Chengshuo Zhang, Jiarong Wu, Wanli Zang and Qiuxia Zhang
Bioengineering 2026, 13(8), 892; https://doi.org/10.3390/bioengineering13080892 - 2 Aug 2026
Viewed by 319
Abstract
Gait asymmetry and reduced gait speed (GS) are common after stroke. This systematic review and meta-analysis evaluated the effects of gait training with lower-limb robotic exoskeletons or exoskeleton-type devices on gait asymmetry and GS compared with conventional rehabilitation or non-robotic gait training. PubMed, [...] Read more.
Gait asymmetry and reduced gait speed (GS) are common after stroke. This systematic review and meta-analysis evaluated the effects of gait training with lower-limb robotic exoskeletons or exoskeleton-type devices on gait asymmetry and GS compared with conventional rehabilitation or non-robotic gait training. PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, the Cochrane Library, and Scopus were searched from inception to 21 June 2026. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) reporting spatial gait asymmetry (SGA), temporal gait asymmetry (TGA), or GS were included. Standardized mean differences (SMDs; Hedges’ g) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were pooled using random-effects models. Eleven RCTs involving 532 randomized participants were included. Training with these devices reduced SGA (SMD = −0.68, 95% CI −1.13 to −0.22, p < 0.01) and improved GS (SMD = 0.46, 95% CI 0.12 to 0.81, p = 0.01), but did not significantly affect TGA (SMD = −0.85, 95% CI −1.90 to 0.20, p = 0.11). The certainty of evidence, assessed using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) framework, was very low for all three outcomes. Gait training with lower-limb robotic exoskeletons or exoskeleton-type devices may reduce SGA and improve GS after stroke, whereas its effect on TGA remains uncertain. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Robotic-Assisted Gait Rehabilitation)
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