Pediatric Powered Wheelchair Standing Devices: An Exploratory Study

September 9, 2025 updated by: Lisa Kenyon, Grand Valley State University
For children who use a power wheelchair, a powered wheelchair standing device (PWSD) may be considered for daily use. A PWSD allows a child to electronically move between sitting and standing and can be driven in either position. Existing published PWSD research in pediatrics is limited to boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD).(1, 2) While these studies provide some insights into PWSD use in boys with DMD, they do not reflect PWSD use in children with other conditions. The purpose of this exploratory study is to determine the feasibility of a research protocol exploring use of a PWSD in children who have neurodevelopmental conditions other than DMD.

Study Overview

Status

Active, not recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

4

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

    • Michigan
      • Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States, 49501
        • Grand Valley State University

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

5 years to 17 years (Child)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  1. Is 5-17 years of age. NOTE: Participants must be under 18 for the duration of the study.
  2. Diagnosed with a neurodevelopmental condition resulting in an inability to functionally ambulate.
  3. Can safely assume and maintain a supported standing position
  4. Has sufficient upper extremity and function to safely use a PWSD
  5. Can communicate pain or discomfort through verbalization, vocalization, use of augmented communication, etc.
  6. Can safely use the PWSD in areas of their home
  7. Has at least one parent/caregiver who is able to converse in English and actively participate in a device-use education provided in English
  8. The PerMobil PWSD can be set up to meet the child's specific needs
  9. Medical Clearance to trial the PWSD
  10. Participants must reside in Michigan

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. Has a diagnosis of Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
  2. Any reason that it would not be safe for the child to use a PWSD

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Power Wheelchair Standing Device User
A power wheelchair standing device is a power wheelchair that allows a child to electronically move between sitting and standing. It can be driven in either position. The Permobil F5 Corpus VS is the specific power wheelchair standing device to be used in this study.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Participation in children
Time Frame: 2 years
Does using a PWSD increase participation in children who have neurodevelopmental conditions other than DMD?
2 years

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Parental/caregiver perceptions
Time Frame: 2 years
Does using a PWSD influence parental/caregiver perceptions of their child's emotional/behavioral status?
2 years
Children's perceptions
Time Frame: 2 years
For children who are able to respond to questions and participate in an interview using either verbal or augmented communication, does using a PWSD influence their own perceptions of their emotional/behavioral status?
2 years

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

November 12, 2021

Primary Completion (Estimated)

October 31, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

October 31, 2027

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

November 1, 2021

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

November 1, 2021

First Posted (Actual)

November 11, 2021

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimated)

September 15, 2025

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

September 9, 2025

Last Verified

September 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

YES

IPD Plan Description

The research team may share research data related to study outcomes from this study with other investigators. If this occurs, the data will not contain identifiable data.

IPD Sharing Time Frame

2 years

IPD Sharing Access Criteria

Contact PI

IPD Sharing Supporting Information Type

  • STUDY_PROTOCOL

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

Yes

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.