Potential of Hybrid Assistive Limb Treatment for Ataxic Gait Due to Cerebellar Disorders Including Hemorrhage, Infarction, and Tumor.

ABSTRACT

Cerebellar hemorrhage (CH) is a severe life-threatening disorder, and surgical treatment is often required in an emergency situation. Even in cases in which the surgical procedure is successful, functional recovery is likely to be delayed because of cerebellar symptoms such as ataxia and gait disturbance. Here, we briefly review the efficacy of hybrid assistive limb (HAL) treatment in neurosurgical practice and propose a new comprehensive treatment strategy for CH to facilitate early neurological recovery. We have experienced cases of ataxic gait due to various etiologies, treated with rehabilitation using the HAL, and our data showed that HAL treatment potentially improves ataxic gait and balance problems. HAL treatment seems to be an effective and promising treatment modality for selected cases. Future studies should evaluate gait appearance and balance, in addition to walking speed, to assess improvement in cerebellar symptoms.