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Open AccessArticle

Gait Analysis of Hemiparetic Adult Patients with a Quadripod Cane and a Rolling Cane

by Bérengère Maillard, Mohamed Boutaayamou, Helena Cassol, Laurence Pirnay and Jean-François Kaux

Healthcare 2024, 12(4), 464; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare12040464 - 12 Feb 2024

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2076

Stroke consequences include hemiparesis and difficulty walking. Several types of canes exist to overcome these alterations, but little data compares the quadripod cane and the rolling cane in hemiparetic patients. The objective of this work is twofold: to determine whether the gait speed—the most often used parameter to assess gait performance—depends on the type of cane, and to establish which spatiotemporal parameters have the most influence. Thirty-four hemiparetic patients performed 10 m walking tests at comfortable and fast speed conditions, using both canes on two different days. To objectively analyze their gait patterns, we used a tri-axial Inertial Measurement Units (IMU)-based system to record the walking signals from which we extracted the gait spatiotemporal parameters. We particularly examined the speed, stride length, and durations of stance, swing, and double support phases. The results showed that hemiparetic patients walked faster with the rolling cane during both speed conditions. These speed increases could be explained by the decrease in the stance phase duration of the affected leg, the decrease in the double support duration, and the increase in cadence. Our findings suggest that the rolling cane allows safe and faster walking. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Rehabilitation Program for Orthopedic and Neurological Patients)

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13 pages, 1034 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Losing the Self in Near-Death Experiences: The Experience of Ego-Dissolution

by Charlotte Martial, Géraldine Fontaine, Olivia Gosseries, Robin Carhart-Harris, Christopher Timmermann, Steven Laureys and Héléna Cassol

Brain Sci. 2021, 11(7), 929; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11070929 - 14 Jul 2021

Cited by 24 | Viewed by 11955

Abstract

Many people who have had a near-death experience (NDE) describe, as part of it, a disturbed sense of having a “distinct self”. However, no empirical studies have been conducted to explore the frequency or intensity of these effects. We surveyed 100 NDE experiencers (Near-Death-Experience Content [NDE-C] scale total score ≥27/80). Eighty participants had their NDEs in life-threatening situations and 20 had theirs not related to life-threatening situations. Participants completed the Ego-Dissolution Inventory (EDI) and the Ego-Inflation Inventory (EII) to assess the experience of ego dissolution and inflation potentially experienced during their NDE, respectively. They also completed the Nature-Relatedness Scale (NR-6) which measures the trait-like construct of one’s self-identification with nature. Based on prior hypotheses, ratings of specific NDE-C items pertaining to out-of-body experiences and a sense of unity were used for correlational analyses. We found higher EDI total scores compared with EII total scores in our sample. Total scores of the NDE-C scale were positively correlated with EDI total scores and, although less strongly, the EII and NR-6 scores. EDI total scores were also positively correlated with the intensity of OBE and a sense of unity. This study suggests that the experience of dissolved ego-boundaries is a common feature of NDEs. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in the Study of Altered State of Consciousness)

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