Proven Studies – WalkPort

PROVEN STUDIES

The Science Behind WalkPort

WalkPort is grounded in peer reviewed research on supported standing, gait training, and locomotor therapy. The studies below represent the evidence base behind the benefits we describe throughout this site.

Walking therapy is not just a concept. It is one of the most studied interventions in rehabilitation medicine. The studies below represent a fraction of the published research supporting the benefits of supported standing, gait training, and locomotor therapy for people living with mobility challenges. We share these so you can make informed decisions, talk to your clinician with confidence, and understand why consistent walking matters.

All studies linked below are published by independent academic or clinical sources.
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Spinal Cord Injury

Randomised trial of the effects of four weeks of daily stretch on extensibility of hamstring muscles in people with spinal cord injuries.

Effect of “standing” on spasticity, contracture and osteoporosis in paralyzed males.

Evaluation of the effects of muscle stretch and weigh load in patients with spastic paraplegia.

Investigation of robotic-assisted tilt-table therapy for early-stage spinal cord injury rehabilitation.

Does regular standing improve bowel function in people with a spinal cord injury?

Changes in bowel function following exoskeletal-assisted walking in persons with spinal cord injury: an observational pilot study.

Tilt table standing for reducing spasticity after spinal cord injury.

Load redistribution in variable position wheelchairs in people with spinal cord injury.

Physical rehabilitation as an agent for recovery after spinal cord injury.

Moving the arms to activate the legs.

Calcium balance in paraplegic patients: influence of injury duration and ambulation.

Bone mineral status in paraplegic patients who do or do not perform standing.

Neural coupling between upper and lower limbs during recumbent stepping.

Femoral loads during passive, active, and active resistive stand after spinal cord injury: a mathematical model.

Case study to evaluate a standing table for managing constipation.

Comparison of the effects of body-weight-supported treadmill training and tilt-table standing on spasticity in individuals with chronic spinal cord injury.

Robot-assisted gait training (Lokomat) improves walking function and activity in people with spinal cord injury: a systematic review.

Locomotor training after human spinal cord injury: a series of case studies.

Retraining the injured spinal cord.

Exoskeletal-Assisted walking during acute inpatient rehabilitation leads to motor and functional improvement in persons with spinal cord injury – a pilot study.

Retraining walking over ground in a powered exoskeleton after spinal cord injury” a prospective cohort study to examine functional gains and neuroplasticity.

Stroke

Lower extremity muscle activation and function in progressive task-oriented training on the supplementary tilt table during stepping-like movements in patients with acute stroke hemiparesis.

The prevalence of joint contractures, pressure sores, painful shoulder, other pain, falls, and depression in the year after a severely disabling stroke.

Effects of a single session of prolonged muscle stretch on spastic muscle of stroke patients.

Reliability and comparison of weight-bearing ability during standing tasks for individuals with chronic stroke.

The effect of progressive task-oriented training on a supplementary tilt table on lower extremity muscle strength and gait recovery in patients with hemiplegic stroke.

Pilot randomized controlled trial to assess the impact of additional supported standing practice on functional ability post stroke.

Robot-assisted gait training for stroke patients: current state of the art and perspectives of robotics.

Biofeedback improves performance in lower limb activities more than usual therapy in people following stroke: a systematic review.

Physical fitness training for stroke patients.

Effects of bodyweight support and guidance force on muscle activation during Locomat walking in people with stroke: a cross-sectional study.

Implementation of high-intensity stepping training during inpatient stroke rehabilitation improves functional outcomes.

Gait coordination after stroke: Benefits of acoustically passed treadmill walking.

Parkinson’s Disease

Nordic walking improves trunk stability and gait spatial-temporal characteristics in people with Parkinson’s Disease.

Exercise for Parkinson’s Disease.

Effectiveness of 6-Week Nordic Walking Training on Functional Performance, Gait Quality, and Quality of Life in Parkinson’s Disease

Does Vigorous Exercise Have a Neuroprotective Effect in Parkinson Disease?

How Might Physical Activity Benefit Patients with Parkinson Disease?

Multiple Sclerosis

Exercise as a therapy for improvement of walking ability in adults with multiple sclerosis.

Effects of single bouts of walking exercise and yoga on acute mood symptoms in people with Multiple Sclerosis.

Telemedicine for monitoring MS activity and progression.

Benefits of exercise training in Multiple Sclerosis.

Exercise effects on Multiple Sclerosis quality of life and clinical-motor symptoms.

The importance of lower-extremity muscle strength for lower-limb functional capacity in multiple sclerosis: Systematic review.

The relationship between physical activity, self-efficacy, and quality of life in people with Multiple Sclerosis

Seniors

Does combined physical and cognitive training improve dual-task balance and gait outcomes in sedentary older adults?

Physical activity in older age: perspectives for healthy ageing and frailty.

Health benefits of daily walking on mortality among younger-elderly men with or without major critical diseases in the new integrated suburban seniority investigation project: a prospective cohort study.

Use of device to support standing during a physical activity program to improve function of individuals with disabilities who reside in a nursing home.

Walking Benefits

Improved gait speed after robot-assisted gait training in patients with motor incomplete spinal cord injury: A preliminary study.

Shaping appropriate locomotive motor output through interlimb neural pathway within spinal cord in humans

Alternate leg movement amplifies locomotor-like muscle activity in spinal cord injured

Clinical practice guideline to improve locomotor function following chronic stroke, incomplete spinal cord injury, and brain injury.

Standing Benefits

Weight bearing through lower limbs in a standing frame with and without arm support and low magnitude whole-body vibration in men and women with complete motor paraplegia

Orthostatic hypotension following spinal cord injury: impact on the use of standing apparatus.

Effect of dynamic weight bearing on neuromuscular activation after spinal cord injury

A systematic review of supported standing programs

Cardiorespiratory fitness and muscular strength of wheelchair users

Bone Density

Does standing protect bone density in patients with chronic spinal cord injury?

Bone mineral status in paraplegic patients who do or do not perform standing

Does 12 weeks of regular standing prevent loss of ankle mobility and bone mineral density in people with recent spinal cord injuries?

Effect of weight-bearing activities on bone mineral density in spinal cord injured patients during the period of the first two years.

Bowel/Bladder/Renal Function

Case study to evaluate a standing table for managing constipation.

Changes in bowel function following exoskeletal-assisted walking in persons with spinal cord injury: an observational pilot study.

Pressure Ulcers

Leg skin temperature with body-weight-supported treadmill and tilt-table standing training after spinal cord injury.

Load redistribution in variable position wheelchairs in people with spinal cord injury.

Brain Health

Aerobic exercise improves quality of life, psychological well-being and systemic inflammation in subjects with Alzheimer’s Disease.

Walking aids moderate exercise effects on gait speed in people with dementia: a randomized controlled trial.

The Effect of Walking on Depressive and Anxiety Symptoms: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Daily Step Count and Depression in Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Activity Based Therapy

Activity-based restorative therapies after spinal cord injury: Inter-institutional conceptions and perceptions.

Effectiveness of intense, activity-based physical therapy for individuals with spinal cord injury in promoting motor and sensory recovery: Is olfactory mucosa autograft a factor?

Activity-based restorative therapies: Concepts and applications in spinal cord injury-related neurorehabilitation.

Activity-based therapies

Repairing the human brain after stroke. II. Restorative therapies

Activity-based therapy for recovery of walking in individuals with chronic spinal cord injury: Results from a randomized clinical trial.

DISCLAIMER

The studies listed on this page are published peer reviewed research from independent academic and clinical sources. WalkPort does not own or control this research. Links are provided for educational purposes only and do not constitute medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before beginning any new therapy or exercise program.

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