OBJECTIVE: Understanding the characteristics related to cardiorespiratory fitness after stroke can provide reference values for patients in clinical rehabilitation exercise. This meta- analysis aimed to investigate the effect of robot-assisted gait training in improving cardiorespiratory fitness in post-stroke patients, compared to conventional rehabilitation training. METHODS: PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, CBM, CNKI and Wanfang databases were searched until March 18th, 2024. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing the effectiveness of robot-assisted gait training versus control group were included. The main outcome variable was peak oxygen uptake. 6-minute walking test, peak heart rate, peak inspiratory expiratory ratio as our secondary indicators. RevMan 5.3 software was used for statistical analysis. RESULTS: A total of 17 articles were included, involving 689 subjects. The results showed a significant effect for robot-assisted gait training to improve VO2peak (MD 1.85; 95% CI -0.13 to 3.57; p = 0.04) and 6WMT (MD 19.26; 95% CI 10.43 to 28.08; p < 0.0001). However, no significant difference favouring robot-assisted gait training were found in HRpeak (MD 3.56; 95% CI -1.90 to 9.02; p = 0.20) and RERpeak (MD -0.01; 95% CI -0.04 to 0.01; p = 0.34). CONCLUSION: These results showed that robot-assisted gait training may have a beneficial effect in improving VO2peak and 6WMT, with a moderate recommendation level according to the GRADE guidelines.

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