Participants

The inclusion criteria were as follows: 1) individuals with a thoracic or lumbar complete SCI, 2) the range of motion of the upper extremities should be within the normal range, 3) the strength of the upper extremities should be at least 5 (graded according to a manual muscle test), 4) ability to maintain the sitting position with hand support for ≥30 s without losing balance, and 5) ability to walk using a KAFO with a walker or forearm crutches. The exclusion criteria were as follows: 1) spasticity of the lower extremities > 3 (evaluated according to the Modified Ashworth Scale) [19], 2) with a previous osteoporosis diagnosis, and 3) any recent musculoskeletal injury or fractures, open wounds, or contractures/deformities of the lower extremities that would affect wearing and walking with the powered exoskeleton.