Design, Development, and Functional Validation of a 3D-Printed Passive Upper Limb Exoskeleton.

Motor disability in children is evident in diagnoses such as cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis, or spinal muscular atrophy, among others, due to altered movement and postural patterns. This becomes more evident as the child grows and can be treated with physical therapy. The effectiveness of early interventions in facilitating an improvement in daily life activities varies depending on the child's condition.

A 3D-printed passive exoskeleton for upper limb assistance in children with motor disorders: proof of concept through an electromyography-based assessment.

The rehabilitation of children with motor disorders is mainly focused on physical interventions. Numerous studies have demonstrated the benefits of upper function using robotic exoskeletons. However, there is still a gap between research and clinical practice, owing to the cost and complexity of these devices.

Mechanical disturbances applied by motorized ankle foot orthosis to adapt ankle muscles activation-A validation study.

Reduced function of ankle muscles usually leads to impaired gait. Motorized ankle foot orthoses (MAFOs) have shown potential to improve neuromuscular control and increase volitional engagement of ankle muscles. In this study, we hypothesize that specific disturbances (adaptive resistance-based perturbations to the planned trajectory) applied by a MAFO can be used to adapt the activity of ankle muscles.

Studying the Research-Practice Gap in Physical Therapies for Cerebral Palsy: Preliminary Outcomes Based on a Survey of Spanish Clinicians.

The purpose of this work is to study the gap between the research evidence and the clinical practice in the physical rehabilitation of people with cerebral palsy. A review process was performed to (1) identify physical therapies to improve postural control in children with cerebral palsy and (2) determine the scientific evidence supporting the effectiveness of those therapies. A Likert-based survey addressing a total of 43 healthcare professionals involved in pediatric physical therapy departments in Spain was carried out.

Evaluation of Child-Computer Interaction Using Fitts' Law: A Comparison between a Standard Computer Mouse and a Head Mouse.

This study evaluates and compares the suitability for child-computer interaction (CCI, the branch within human-computer interaction focused on interactive computer systems for children) of two devices: a standard computer mouse and the ENLAZA interface, a head mouse that measures the user's head posture using an inertial sensor. A multidirectional pointing task was used to assess the motor performance and the users' ability to learn such a task. The evaluation was based on the interpretation of the metrics derived from Fitts' law.