Adult ambulatory assistive devices: need for an improved design

摘要

The pairing of healthcare practitioners with engineers can produce products to revolutionise patient care. This paper discusses benefits of a novel-design ambulatory assistive device to promote gait efficiency and safety in adult individuals with balance disorders. Posterior-wheeled walkers are commonly used and reported in paediatric research literature to promote increased walking speed and decreased energy demand, when compared to anterior-wheeled walkers. Posterior walkers are not commonly utilised for adults in the USA, likely, due to limited commercial availability and problems with size and function of current designs. This paper reports a new equipment design for an adult posterior-wheeled walker with features that promote optimal skeletal alignment, allow normal stride length, and provide protection against backward and lateral falls, while reducing mechanical vibration within the device itself. Additional features enhance ease of storage, transport, and aesthetics.