Education and demonstration – Physical education
Reexamination Certificate
2001-07-27
2003-09-09
Nguyen, Kien T. (Department: 3712)
Education and demonstration
Physical education
C434S256000, C472S059000, C472S097000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06616456
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to riding devices, and more particularly to a therapeutic riding device which treats physical and mental impairments of riders by simulating the motion of a horse in three dimensions.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Hippotherapy is the use of horseback riding to enhance the balance and muscle function of people with neurological disorders. This technique originated in Germany and has been used in the United States since the 1950's. In the United States licensed physical and occupational therapists have designed hippotherapy treatments for over 26,000 neurologically impaired riders.
Physical therapists have documented the following medical benefits of hippotherapy: decreased spasticity, improved balance, improved coordination, improved gait, improved posture, and improved range of motion. Occupational therapists have reported that hippotherapy improves the organization of the sensory system, increases oral motor control, improves cognition, awareness, and processing, improves hand control, and increases the psycho-social interaction of the rider with the environment.
Unfortunately the cost of boarding, feeding, training, grooming, and caring for a horse for use in hippotherapy has prevented many therapists from utilizing this therapeutic exercise. In fact, due to the lack of a cost-effective hippotherapy treatment method, in conjunction with dwindling insurance reimbursements, many therapy centers simply can not afford to implement a hippotherapy program.
The use of a horse in hippotherapy has several inherent limitations. For example, it is difficult to select and train a horse for hippotherapy. Only about 15% of the available horses in the United States fit the criteria for the proper pelvic, trunk, hip, and leg movements during walking to be of therapeutic value to the rider. If a suitable horse can be found, it must then be trained to accommodate a physically or neurologically impaired rider. This includes desensitization of the horse to the sights and sounds associated with moving wheelchair components, unusual vocalizations or limb movements from the rider, stiff legs and trunk of the rider, an inability of the neurologically impaired rider to shift his/her weight when necessary, and the many volunteers walking beside the horse and possibly holding the rider. Once a horse is selected, most often that horse is kept in a horse arena which may be out-of-town. Having to travel to perform hippotherapy is inconvenient for the caregiver or parent of a neurologically impaired rider. If more than one horse is used for hippotherapy, the anatomical and biomechanical variations between the horses may prevent riders from experiencing the same level of therapy from one treatment session to another.
Often, hippotherapy is limited by weather conditions and the mood of the horse. Rain, lightning, or high winds can startle a horse, requiring immediate dismount of the rider and cessation of the hippotherapy treatment. Also, horses may become agitated from seemingly insignificant incidents such as a piece of paper blowing across the dirt, other horses walking into the arena, sudden movements, or loud noises. In order to prevent a horse from bolting out of an arena with the mounted rider or rearing up onto its hind legs throwing the rider off the saddle, a person leading the horse often needs to tightly control the reins while standing in front of the horse.
Other problems associated with hippotherapy arise due to the condition of the rider. Neurologically-impaired riders often require three to four people at the horse arena to (a) determine the most therapeutic position for the rider receiving hippotherapy, (b) groom and saddle the horse, (c) assist in the transfer to and from the horse, and (d) lead or walk beside the horse. In the event that one or more of these people are absent, the rider often can not safely receive hippotherapy, so treatment must be canceled. Physically or psychologically impaired riders sometimes have weak or no strength in their hands which prevents the riders from forming a good grip onto the horn of a horse's saddle. Furthermore, riders often have poor balance and coordination. Additionally, it is often difficult for riders to regain control of a startled horse, even if assisted by a therapist. Because some neurologically impaired riders require additional physical support during hippotherapy, an adult often sits on the same horse and holds the patient from behind. This technique, however, puts extra strain on the back of the horse which can cause it injury. If a horse's back has been injured, no riding will be allowed until the injury has healed.
Finally, hippotherapy carries with it the risk of injury to the rider or to therapists assisting the rider. Therapists may be stepped on or kicked by the horse. Riders may fall off a startled horse, incurring serious injury despite the use of a helmet.
The problems enumerated in the foregoing are not intended to be exhaustive but rather are among many which tend to impair the effectiveness of previously known hippotherapy treatments. Other noteworthy problems may also exist: however, those presented above should be sufficient to demonstrate that hippotherapy treatment in the art has not been altogether satisfactory.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Biomechanical analyses of the three planes of movement which occur as horses walk have provided much information on pelvic movements of an ideal hippotherapy horse. It has been determined that an ideal hippotherapy horse has a walking pace of 60-120 steps per minute. Such a pace is believed to provide for maximum therapeutic value for a rider patient. Analyses of the effects imposed on the rider currently indicate that three dimensional cyclic movement patterns of the horse's pelvis should be within the following parameters: a lateral pelvic tilt of about 5° to about 15°, with a preferred lateral pelvic tilt of about 10°. This value was determined by drawing an imaginary line in the y-direction through the posterior aspect of the ileum bone comprising half of the pelvis. As the horse completed push-off and began the swing phase of the hind limb forward, that half of the pelvis tilted out (laterally). A second imaginary line was drawn through the same points on the posterior aspect of the ileum. The angle between these two lines during rotation of the ileum along the z-axis was determined to be about 5° to about 15° and was called the lateral pelvic tilt.
During limb acceleration (swing phase) the horse's trunk and pelvis were rotated forward about 3° to about 15°, with an average rotation of about 5° to about 8° (with the spine as the origin of the angle). Similarly, deceleration of the limb in the stance phase caused rotation of that side of the pelvis in the opposite direction. Schematic representation of this motion can be described as a rotation about the local z-axis at the left pelvis (point B of
FIG. 1
) of the horse. A clockwise rotation about the z-axis, viewed from above the horse, would result in a pelvic rotation forward. The same clockwise rotation along the local z-axis at the right pelvis (point A of
FIG. 1
) would result in a pelvic rotation back toward the tail of the horse.
Coupled with the pelvic rotation is a lateral displacement along the x-axis of about 3 cm to about 12 cm. Ideally, 7-8 cm of lateral pelvic displacement would occur. Note that lateral pelvic displacement occurs in the positive x-direction on the left side and in the negative x-direction on the right side of the body. The lateral pelvic displacement was measured at the greatest point of the arc along the local x-axis and was directly related to the size of the pelvis of the horse.
A displacement occurs along the z-axis as the horse loads and then unloads the hind limb. This measurement was recorded by measuring the change in the height of the pelvis from the neutral line between point A and point B (
FIG. 1
) and (FIG.
16
). Depending on the height of the horse, this displacement on the average horse was found to be about 2 cm to
Nalty Theresa J.
Skloss Wayne
Board of Regents , The University of Texas System
Nguyen Kien T.
Trop Pruner & Hu P.C.
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