Abstract:

Objective Rehabilitation training is an essential therapeutic component for patients with lower limb dysfunction and a crucial means of promoting the recovery of mobility. To study and analyze the characteristics of human lower limb rehabilitation training, and finally achieve the effect of stabilizing muscles and joints and alleviating muscle fatigue. Aiming to enhance muscle stabilization and improve training outcomes during rehabilitation, whole garment rehabilitation training pants specifically designed for lower limb rehabilitation were studied and developed.

Method Compression applied by clothing on the surface of the human body has been reported to alleviate muscle fatigue and to stabilize joints. An analysis of human body characteristics and muscle dynamics during rehabilitation activities was conducted to determine the functional requirements for the design of the training pants. According to the different needs of the lower limb area, the targeted design was carried out, and different knitting structures were used to achieve the needs of stabilizing muscles and joints. Utilizing the whole garment technology, the rehabilitation training pants were designed using the TOP2 FAST machine from SANTONI (Shanghai) and were made of nylon and spandex fibers.

Results The training pants feature the functional partitioning design targeting different leg muscle groups, achieving region specific pressure comfort and elastic stretch performance through various knitting structures. Pressure tests and subjective comfort evaluation were conducted. In the pressure tests, the subjects wore training pants to familiarise with the training actions, and the dynamic pressure test in the rehabilitation training actions was performed. The static pressure test at 7 lower limb test points showed a pressure range of 1.34 to 3.66 kPa. The pressure on the knee was the largest, with an average of 3.28 kPa, and the pressure on the front side of the thigh was the smallest, with an average of 1.66 kPa. The test values of the remaining parts were relatively stable, and the test pressure values range from 1.82 kPa to 2.00 kPa. Dynamic tests included three types of rehabilitation movements, where the pressure values at different test points displayed stable changes across different movements. In the static and dynamic experiments, each part can adapt to different training actions to achieve a comfortable pressure range. The rehabilitation training pants performed well in both static and dynamic tests, with pressure thresholds within a comfortable range and adaptability to various rehabilitation exercises. In the subjective comfort evaluation, the subjects evaluated the four indicators which are comfort, stability, sultry feeling and fatigue of the training pants using a 0 to 5 score system with 0 indicating no obvious effect and 5 having a clear sense of effect. The experimental results show that the positive feedback comfort and stability experience are obvious, and when test was stablized, the comfort score was 4.66-4.03 and stability score was 4.90-4.73. The feeling of sultry and fatigue increased with time but still not obvious, with stablized sultry feeling score being 0.53-2.43 and fatigue score 0.00-2.66. Additionally, all tests confirmed that the training pants performance was good in comfort, stability, and muscle fatigue relief, making them comfortable to wear.

Conclusion A tight-fitting and comfortable whole garment rehabilitation training pants were designed and developed for lower limb rehabilitation training. Taking into consideration of the in-depth analysis of the major muscle groups and leg shape of the lower limbs, muscle dynamics and joint needs in rehabilitation training, and whole garment technology, the pants was engineered utilizing appropriate yarn materials and various knitting structures. Testing has verified the effectiveness in meeting the needs of lower limb rehabilitation training, enhancing rehabilitation outcomes, and preventing sports injuries. The whole garment rehabilitation training pants designed in this study not only provide a new type of rehabilitation training equipment for patients with lower limb functional disorders but also offer new rehabilitation training equipment ideas and methods.

Key words: whole garment, knitting technology, functional partitioning, muscle fatigue, rehabilitation training, clothing pressure