How the WalkAide Works
The WalkAide applies low level electrical currents directly to the peroneal nerve (the nerve that controls the movement of the ankle and the foot), prompting a muscle contraction that lifts the foot at the appropriate time during the gait cycle. The device uses an embedded accelerometer, which is similar sensor technology to that used in Wii video gaming systems, to determine the appropriate the appropriate timing for stimulation with every step. In addition to incomplete spinal cord injury, the WalkAide is recommended for cases of foot drop caused by stroke, multiple sclerosis (MS), tramautic brain injury or celebral palsy.
Most people take the fact that they are able to put one foot in front of the other for granted. And it doesn’t take concentrated effort to do so. But for Theresa Mayer of Yellow Springs, that simple fact of life changed forever in 1985 when she was involved in an automobile accident at the age of 31, which resulted in her paralysis.
“I broke my neck and had a C6 fracture and was left paralyzed from the neck down,” Mayer said. “I was immediately taken by Care Flight to Miami Valley Hospital and was there recovering for five months.”
Mayer was told she should accept the fact that she may never walk again, because she had no use of her legs initially. “I did use a wheelchair for at least a year,” she said. “But I was standing when I left the hospital and could take a few steps using a walker.”
After many months of physical therapy, Mayer’s paralysis had gradually begun to reverse and she started to regain some use of her legs, but was very weak as a result of her spinal cord injury. The injury caused severe weakness on her left side, including a form of lower leg paralysis known as “foot drop” that prevents people with this condition from raising and lowering their feet as they walk, often causing them to stumble and fall.
“I had several surgeries to help with this condition and eventually got an AFO (ankle-foot orthosis) hinged inside my shoe,” Mayer said. “It did help me walk but it was causing other problems because it was doing all the work for my leg.” This meant when she removed the AFO, her leg was weaker as a result.
Mayer had always been an active person and continued to work with physical therapists to improve her mobility and endurance, hoping to get back to the walking, hiking and travel she loved.
“I found out about the WalkAide,” Mayer said. “I worked with my physical therapist to get it and have worn it since 2009. It’s made a huge difference for me.”
The WalkAide is a device that Mayer wears to help stimulate the motor nerve that controls the movement of her ankle and foot. The device applies a low level electrical current directly to the nerve and prompts a muscle contraction that lifts her foot at the appropriate time so she can walk without stumbling.
“With spinal cord injuries you can have differences in legs,” Mayer said. “On my left side I have feeling but not a lot of strength and on my right side I have normal strength but not feeling. Before using the WalkAide, my left calf was a lot smaller than my right but now they are nearly the same size.”
Mayer said the device needs to be adjusted periodically but she regularly works with both her physical therapist and her clinician, Liz Whitfield, from the Hanger Clinic in Centerville to continually improve her quality of life.
“I’ve been able to go back and do a lot of normal everyday life things,” Mayer said. “Just being able to walk the dog and walk around the grocery store now and doing things that most people take for granted again is great. It’s all been really difficult for me and I would get exhausted just walking around. Now I can walk from the front yard to the back yard without having to concentrate on every step.” Mayer said she even has energy left at the end of a day of shopping to go out to dinner without having to go home and rest beforehand.
Mayer has also returned to two of her lifelong passions of traveling and hiking and since being fitted with the WalkAide, she has hiked in the Puerto Rico rain forest, in California and in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. “I also like hiking around Yellow Springs at John Bryan, Glen Helen and Clifton Gorge,” Mayer said. “The device has given me a lot more freedom to do the things I want to do.”
Today a mother of two grown sons, Mayer’s oldest son was just a year old when she had her accident. She gave birth to her second son, after she did her own research to ensure it was safe to do so, five years after her accident.
“It’s been a long road back to get where I am today,” she said. “My entire family has always been here with me and helped me along the way. My parents helped me with my kids and my husband was with me through everything. Everyone in the community of Yellow Springs - they just look at me as Theresa… I am accepted for who I am, which is a wonderful. I feel blessed to have recovered here and to have had that kind of support.”
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