# Impact of Mobile Manual Standing Wheelchair on Standing Dosage and Utility

> **NIH VA I01** · MINNEAPOLIS VA  MEDICAL CENTER · 2022 · —

## Abstract

Many standing frames and standing wheelchairs support people in the standing position but once
upright their utility is limited to those activities that are immediately within the range of the position
where the person stood up. Joystick-operated power wheelchairs can move between work surfaces
while remaining in a standing posture but can be difficult to maneuver in tight spaces, require
specialized equipment for transportation, and limit the user’s potential for exercise. Numerous
exoskeletons are now available that allow the user to move while standing but require continuous
counterbalance from upper extremity mobility aides thus eliminating potential for functional activities
involving use of the hands while upright.
We contend that for Veterans with SCI to stand enough to impact health outcomes, the standing device
must enhance utility while integrating into their everyday life; at home, at work, and in the community.
For this integration to occur, we believe the standing device must fulfill the following criteria: 1. Easy
access, 2. Straightforward standing mechanism, 3. Mobility in both seated and standing positions, 4.
Natural intuitive propulsion, 5. Stability, and 6. Independent operability. The Minneapolis Adaptive
Design & Engineering (MADE) Program has recently developed a mobile manual standing wheelchair
(MMSW) with all these features. Based on our initial in-lab pilot testing, Veterans who trialed the device
demonstrated excellent functional mobility and stability in both seated and standing postures. User
feedback received during this initial testing also indicated these unique mobility and stability features
offer potential new utility for paralyzed Veterans.
In the current proposal we will extend testing of our MMSW to the home and community environments
of 48 Veterans with spinal cord injury recruited from the Minneapolis and Palo Alto VA Health Care
Systems. The primary outcomes will include perceived utility as measured by the Wheelchair Outcome
Measure (WhOM), and self-selected standing dose (time spent standing per day) and standing
frequency (number of standing bouts per day) measured by an accelerometer data logger installed on
the standing devices. For participants who currently use standing devices at home, we will assess the
baseline perceived utility of their current device and will instrument their current device with a data
logger to measure standing dose over the first two-month period. Participants who are naïve to standing
will be able to receive additional therapy training sessions during this first two-month interval to build
their tolerance for standing, if necessary. Participants will then be randomized to receive a study manual
standing wheelchair either with or without the standing mobility feature installed. After two months of
home and community use, perceived utility will be reassessed, and data loggers collected for analysis.
We will also collect several secondary outcomes on psychosocial impact, devic...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10187877
- **Project number:** 1I01RX003505-01A1
- **Recipient organization:** MINNEAPOLIS VA  MEDICAL CENTER
- **Principal Investigator:** Andrew H. Hansen
- **Activity code:** I01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** VA
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** —
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2021-10-01 → 2025-09-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10187877

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10187877, Impact of Mobile Manual Standing Wheelchair on Standing Dosage and Utility (1I01RX003505-01A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10187877. Licensed CC0.

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