Tag: David Leone
With device’s aid, the paralyzed take steps anew
Rehabilitation facilities test robotic exoskeleton
David Leone left behind his familiar wheelchair, shifting himself onto a chair where a robotic external skeleton fitted to his 5-foot-11-inch frame sat waiting. Half a dozen people scurried around him, cinching Velcro straps tight around his legs and torso. He grabbed the handles of a walker, leaned forward, and hoisted himself to his feet.
Seven years after he last walked, Leone – paralyzed from the waist down – lifted his right foot and took a step, with the robotic technology moving his limbs.
The 37-year-old from Millis kept on going, racking up 284 steps in a 42-minute session this week at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital in Boston.
