Mobility aid are devices designed to assist walking or otherwise improve the mobility of patients with a mobility impairment.

• Walking aids, including:
  • Cane (aka walking stick), the simplest form of walking aid. It is held in the hadn and transmits loads to the floor through a shaft. Te load which can be applied through a cane is transmitted through the user's hands and wrists, and limited by these
  • Crutches, transmits loads to the ground through a shaft, but has 2 points of contact with the arm, at the hand and either below the elbow or below the armpit. This allows significantly greater loads to be exerted through a crutch in comparison with a cane
  • Combination of canes, crutches, and forearm crutches, that have bands that encircle the upper arms and handles for the patient to hold and rest their hands to support the body weight. Forearm crutch typically gives a user the support of the cane but with additonal forearm support to assist in mobility. The forearm portion helps increase balance, lateral stability, and also reduces the load on the wrist
  • Walker (aka Zimmer frame), the most stable walking aid, and consists of a freestanding metal framework with 3 or more points of contact which the user places in front of them, and then grips during movement
  • Walker cane hybrid, which bridges the gap between a cane and walker. The hyrbid has 2 legs which provide lateral (side-to-side) support, which a cane doesn't. It can be used with 2 hands in front of the user, similar to a walker, and provides an increased level of support compared with a cane. It can be adjusted for use with either 1 or 2 hands, at the front and at the side, as ewll as a stair climbing assistant
  • Gait trainers, which is more supportive than the standard walker. It typically offers support that assists weight-bearing and balance. The accessories that attach to the product frame provide unweighting support and postural alignment to enable walking practice
• Seated walking scooter, allows users with normal balance and foot, knee or hip conditions, to unload the lower extremities. The 2-wheeled scooter has a bicycle-type seat and handlebars, and is manually propelled with 1 or both feet. It provides more support than a cane, and is lighter, less bulky, and easier to propel than a wheelchair
• Wheelchairs and scooters, which provide a wheeled device on which the user sits. It may be either manually propelled, or electrically powered (aka powerchair, motorized wheelchair, mobility scooter). Scooters are recommended due to significant mobility/balance impairment
• Stairlifts, a mechanical device for lifting people/wheelchairs up and down stairs. Special purpose lifts can also be provided to facilitate access for the disabled
• Others, including:
  • Sling lifts (aka patient lift, patient hoist, jack hoist, hydraulic lift), which allows patients in hospitals and nursing homes, and those receiving home health care, to be transferred betwene a bed and chair or other similar resting places, using hydraulic power. It is used for patients whose mobility is limited. It can either be a sling lift (aka Hoyer lift) or sit-to-stand lift
  • Lift chairs, which are chairs that feature a powered lifting mechanism that pushes the entire chair up from its base, and so assists the user to a standing position
  • Knee scooter (aka knee walker, knee coaster, knee cruiser, knee caddy, orthopedic scooter, leg walker), is a 2, 3 or 4-wheeled alternative to crutches or a traditional walker as an ambulation aid

• Assistive technology