Grant: Collaborative Health Research Projects

Stroke is the leading cause of death and disability in Canada and has an estimatedhealthcare cost of approximately $3.6 billion. Those affected by stroke usually suffer from gaitdisturbances and abnormalities, reducing walking performance. As a result, gait recovery is amajor goal in stroke rehabilitation that aims to help individuals regain motor function to beable to walk and perform daily activities independently. Most wearable technologies for gaitmonitoring and assessment are impractical, or inaccurate, especially at slow walking speeds.There is, therefore, a need for a novel technology that can accurately assist in monitoring andimproving gait performance, while still being affordable.We propose a novel technology to monitor movement in people with stroke. We will involveresearchers, patients, clinicians, industry and local health authorities in the development andvalidation phases to ensure the results can be commercialized and implemented into clinicalpractice. The technology has the potential to improve recovery of gait for Canadians livingwith stroke. The technology will also be applicable to other populations such as individualswith spinal cord injury, multiple sclerosis, and older adults living in care homes. Additionally,advances in the field of engineering geared towards rehabilitation, computer interfaces andergonomics will be made.