helping people walk safely, independently, and confidently one step at a time.
Taking steps with a physical therapist or clinician by your side is one thing—what happens outside is another. NexStride is helping patients keep up momentum when they are outside the clinic. NexStride is the only device that offers the variability of attaching to any cane/walker/walking pole, the variety of both visual and auditory cues, and the control of on-demand cues. Our device uses proven technology to help patients overcome anxiety and self-doubt around walking, and improve their quality of life - today. We believe that keeping movement as long as possible is crucial to a well-lived life, and we believe that people can overcome their doubts, fears, and apathy about movement even in the most challenging situations with the right tools such as NexStride. Furthermore, we’re reducing the need for clinicians to be the cue (clapping hands, snapping fingers or verbal guidance) that patients depend on in the clinic. This saves clinicians’ time in clinic, and it allows them to observe the progress and impact of their treatment plans rather than having to be the cuer and the observer at the same time.
Visual and auditory cues have been used by physical therapy clinics for years and over 100 peer-reviewed articles have been published showing they are effective, but there is not a widely available, retrofit, and versatile solution for people to access these cues when they’re on their own. After speaking to 100+ PT clinics across the nation, we witnessed a common pattern of clinicians clapping their hands or using duct tape lines as cueing methods for their patients. While this might help the patient temporarily, it highlights widening issues of clinical care not being translated to home care and falls and injuries that occur at home due to a lack of tools to help keep patients safe and mobile. This leads to a bigger problem of injuries due to falls and increasing readmission rates in medical centers. Our non-invasive mobility solution is allowing people with gait disorders to have access to powerful visual and auditory cues at the tip of their fingers. We’re also giving clinicians another tool for their toolbox to help their patients be safely mobile. NexStride’s cues have been shown to reduce falls by 40%, reduce duration or a freezing episode by 69%, and reduce frequency of episodes by 43% for people with Parkinson’s. These cues can help normalize gait quicker, and reduce recovery time or improve a variety of mobility metrics. NexStride’s cues have also been shown to be effective in Stroke Rehab, Multiple Sclerosis, Cerebral Palsy, and Progressive Supranuclear Palsy.
We have published a NexStride whitepaper on Parkinson’s and a NexStride case study on Stroke in collaboration with Bellevue Hospital. In our white paper, we address that cueing training for persons with Parkinson’s is widely used and has beneficial effects on a variety of mobility metrics including, but not limited to, gait features such as stride length, gait speed, frequency of freezing episodes and falls. Overall, visual and auditory cues have been shown to reduce duration of freezing episodes by 69%, reduce frequency of freezing episodes by 43% and reduce frequency of falls by 40%. There is also strong evidence for continued improvements when cueing part of an individual’s daily routine. In our case study published on a stroke patient at Bellevue Hospital, the use of NexStride’s visual cues on a rolling walker during physical therapy sessions resulted in an improved base of support (BOS), decreased scissoring of foot placement, and an increased steadiness during ambulation. A recent customer survey (N=42) also showed that 100% of our customers reported increased confidence while walking and 93% reported decreased fear of falling when using the NexStride. We’re enabling people to walk safely, confidently and independently.
