GaitSmart assessment and vGym personalised exercise rehabilitation programme for people with gait and mobility issues

The following is an extract of the NICE MIB283 

Current care pathway 

Older people who have suffered a fall or report recurring falls, or have abnormal gait or balance, are normally offered a multifactorial falls risk assessment by a healthcare professional in a specialist falls service. Interventions are tailored to each individual and usually include exercise, strength and balance training, home hazard assessment, vision assessment and medication review. 

People with hip or knee osteoarthritis do not have their gait assessed specifically in clinical practice, but holistic assessment and patient information is provided. This includes pain assessment and advice on exercise. 

People who have had a hip or knee replacement are given advice on pre-operative rehabilitation. This includes exercises to do before and after surgery to aid recovery. Rehabilitation after the procedure is usually self-directed based on advice received before discharge. 

The following publications have been identified as relevant to this care pathway: 

• • NICE guideline on falls in older people: assessing risk and prevention
  • NICE guideline on osteoarthritis: care and management
  • NICE guideline on joint replacement: hip, knee and shoulder
  • NICE clinical knowledge summary on falls risk assessment
  • NICE clinical knowledge summary on osteoarthritis
  • NICE clinical knowledge summary on knee pain assessment.

Population, setting and intended user 

GaitSmart is intended to be used in older people at risk of falling, people with hip or knee osteoarthritis and people with hip or knee replacements. 

Potential patient impact 

All of the experts mentioned the potential of this technology in engaging people to take a more active approach in their rehabilitation and to chart their own progress over time. As the treatments are tailored to each individual through the personalised exercise plan, people are motivated to follow the programme and less physiotherapist involvement is needed in the community.

Potential system impact 

Three of the experts commented that the technology could change the current treatment pathway. GaitSmart could allow people to have dedicated rehabilitation therapy before surgery, which could lead to improved health outcomes and decreased hospital stay

Download the full NICE Briefing (MIB283) as a PDF here

You can also view the MIB on the NICE web site please click here.