Cadence Biomedical is a medical device company that provides orthotic products to help individuals with severe mobility impairments to walk again. The company is located in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

, Washington and was founded in 2007 under the name Empowering Engineering Technologies.

Products

Cadence Biomedical released its first product, the Kickstart Walking System, in August 2012. Kickstart is a wearable device, or

orthosis Orthotics ( el, Ορθός, translit=ortho, lit=to straighten, to align) is a medical specialty that focuses on the design and application of orthoses, or braces. An is "an externally applied device used to influence the structural and functio ...

, that gives users stability and the ability to walk independently. The device is intended to improve mobility for those in

stroke recovery The primary goals of stroke management are to reduce brain injury and promote maximum patient recovery. Rapid detection and appropriate emergency medical care are essential for optimizing health outcomes. When available, patients are admitted to ...

, or for individuals with neurological injuries such as

spinal cord injury A spinal cord injury (SCI) is damage to the spinal cord that causes temporary or permanent changes in its function. Symptoms may include loss of muscle function, sensation, or autonomic function in the parts of the body served by the spinal cor ...

, traumatic brain injury,

multiple sclerosis Multiple (cerebral) sclerosis (MS), also known as encephalomyelitis disseminata or disseminated sclerosis, is the most common demyelinating disease, in which the insulating covers of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord are damaged. This d ...

muscular dystrophy Muscular dystrophies (MD) are a genetically and clinically heterogeneous group of rare neuromuscular diseases that cause progressive weakness and breakdown of skeletal muscles over time. The disorders differ as to which muscles are primarily affe ...

. It is designed to provide walking assistance and stability for those who have difficulty walking, especially if they experience difficulty lifting their knee, catching toes when taking a step, lack of endurance, or problems with coordination, balance, or stability. The device uses no external power or batteries to provide assistance,/ but functions similarly to

robotic exoskeletons Robotics is an interdisciplinary branch of computer science and engineering. Robotics involves design, construction, operation, and use of robots. The goal of robotics is to design machines that can help and assist humans. Robotics integrat ...

in that it helps to move the legs forward and augments existing strength. The product was released in 2012 and is available through

orthotists An orthotist is a healthcare professional who specializes in the provision of orthoses. An orthotist has an overall responsibly of orthotics treatment, who can supervise and mentor the practice of other personnel. They are clinicians trained to as ...

in the United States.

References

External links

* {{Official website, http://www.cadencebiomedical.com/ Mobility devices Companies based in Seattle