Effects of Lokomat Training on Dynamic Postural Stability in Incomplete Spinal Cord Injury

June 1, 2026 updated by: I.R.C.C.S. Fondazione Santa Lucia

Evaluation of the Effects of Robotic Training on Dynamic Postural Stability, Symmetry, and Gait Smoothness in Subjects With Incomplete Spinal Cord Injury: a Randomized Controlled Trial

The study aims to evaluate the effects of robotic-assisted gait training (Lokomat) on dynamic postural stability in patients with incomplete spinal cord injury (SCI). Participants will be randomized into two groups: one receiving robotic training and another receiving conventional postural stability exercises. The primary evaluation will use the Mini-BESTest, supplemented by objective gait analysis using wearable inertial sensors (IMUs) to measure symmetry, fluidity, and stability. A secondary objective is to compare these gait indices between SCI patients and healthy individuals.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Active, not recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
30

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • 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

  • Italy
    • RM
      • Roma, RM, Italy, 00179
        • Santa Lucia Foundation, Scientific Institute for Research and Health Care

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

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Incomplete Spinal Cord Injury (ASIA scale C or D).
  • Traumatic or non-traumatic, subacute or chronic.
  • Walking Index for Spinal Cord Injury (WISCI) score > 5.
  • Height ≤ 200 cm and Weight ≤ 135 kg.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Cognitive impairments preventing task comprehension.
  • Grade 2 or higher pressure ulcers.
  • Severe spasticity (Modified Ashworth Scale > 2).
  • Orthopedic, vestibular, or other neurological comorbidities affecting gait.
  • Severe heart failure or cardiovascular instability.

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: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Double

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: Intervention (Robotic)
12 sessions (3x/week, 40 min) of robotic gait training with adaptive speed, body weight support, and assistance levels.
Other: Robotic Rehabilitation
It is a robotic rehabilitation with Lokomat training.
Active Comparator: Control (Usual Care)
12 sessions (3x/week, 40 min) focused on sensorimotor recovery and non-robotic dynamic postural stability exercises.
Other: Control
Conventional rehabilitation (Physiotherapy)

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Mini-Balance Evaluation Systems Test (Mini-BESTest) Score
Time Frame: Baseline (prior to the first intervention session) and 4 weeks post-baseline (after 12 intervention sessions).
Assessment of dynamic balance across 14 tasks (Score range: 0-28, with higher scores indicating better balance performance and lower fall risk).
Baseline (prior to the first intervention session) and 4 weeks post-baseline (after 12 intervention sessions).

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Berg Balance Scale (BBS)
Time Frame: Baseline (prior to the first intervention session) and 4 weeks post-baseline (after 12 intervention sessions).
Static and dynamic balance assessment (Score range: 0-56, with higher scores indicating better balance performance and lower fall risk).
Baseline (prior to the first intervention session) and 4 weeks post-baseline (after 12 intervention sessions).
Dynamic Gait Index (DGI)
Time Frame: Baseline (prior to the first intervention session) and 4 weeks post-baseline (after 12 intervention sessions).
Ability to modify gait in response to task demands (Score range: 0-24, with higher scores indicating better balance performance and lower fall risk).
Baseline (prior to the first intervention session) and 4 weeks post-baseline (after 12 intervention sessions).
Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU)-derived Gait Parameters
Time Frame: Baseline (prior to the first intervention session) and 4 weeks post-baseline (after 12 intervention sessions).
Quantitative measures spatiotemporal gait parameters
Baseline (prior to the first intervention session) and 4 weeks post-baseline (after 12 intervention sessions).
IMU-derived Gait Parameters - Root Mean Square
Time Frame: Baseline (prior to the first intervention session) and 4 weeks post-baseline (after 12 intervention sessions).
Quantitative measures of dynamic postural stability (Root Mean Square)
Baseline (prior to the first intervention session) and 4 weeks post-baseline (after 12 intervention sessions).
IMU-derived Gait Parameters -Improved Harmonic Ratio
Time Frame: Baseline (prior to the first intervention session) and 4 weeks post-baseline (after 12 intervention sessions).
Quantitative measures of simmetry of gait (Improved Harmonic Ratio)
Baseline (prior to the first intervention session) and 4 weeks post-baseline (after 12 intervention sessions).
IMU-derived Gait Parameters -log dimensionless jerk
Time Frame: Baseline (prior to the first intervention session) and 4 weeks post-baseline (after 12 intervention sessions).
Quantitative measures of smoothness of gait (log dimensionless jerk)
Baseline (prior to the first intervention session) and 4 weeks post-baseline (after 12 intervention sessions).

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
I.R.C.C.S. Fondazione Santa Lucia

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

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)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
May 15, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
May 1, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
December 1, 2027

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
May 15, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
June 1, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
June 2, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
June 2, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
June 1, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 418/SL/25

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

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.

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