Voluntary control of wearable robotic exoskeletons by patients with paresis via neuromechanical modeling.

Background: Research efforts in neurorehabilitation technologies have been directed towards creating robotic exoskeletons to restore motor function in impaired individuals. However, despite advances in mechatronics and bioelectrical signal processing, current robotic exoskeletons have had only modest clinical impact. A major limitation is the inability to enable exoskeleton voluntary control in neurologically impaired individuals.

Novel kinematic indices for quantifying upper limb ability and dexterity after cervical spinal cord injury.

Loss of motor function is a consequence after cervical spinal cord injury. Three-dimensional kinematic analysis equipments are used for quantifying human movements in clinical laboratories. These systems may provide objectivity to the patient assessments.

Novel kinematic indices for quantifying movement agility and smoothness after cervical Spinal Cord Injury.

Background: After cervical Spinal Cord Injury (SCI), upper limb movements made by patients have a lack of smoothness and a hand velocity profile characterized by a high number of velocity peaks.

Objective: The aim of the present paper is to propose three novel kinematic indices for quantifying movement agility and smoothness, and to analyze their discriminative capability between healthy and pathological people.

Methods: 18 people, healthy and two groups of patients with cervical SCI, participated in the study.

[Effectiveness of a programme based on a virtual reality game for cognitive enhancement in schizophrenia].

Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of a programme based on a virtual reality game to improve cognitive domains in patients with schizophrenia.

Method: A randomized controlled trial was conducted in 40 patients with schizophrenia, 20 in the experimental group and 20 in the control group. The experimental group received 10 sessions with Nintendo Wii(®) for 5 weeks, 50 minutes/session, 2 days/week in addition to conventional treatment.

Upper limb rehabilitation after spinal cord injury: a treatment based on a data glove and an immersive virtual reality environment.

Unlabelled: Purpose state: The aim of this preliminary study was to test a data glove, CyberTouch™, combined with a virtual reality (VR) environment, for using in therapeutic training of reaching movements after spinal cord injury (SCI).

Method: Nine patients with thoracic SCI were selected to perform a pilot study by comparing two treatments: patients in the intervention group (IG) conducted a VR training based on the use of a data glove, CyberTouch™ for 2 weeks, while patients in the control group (CG) only underwent the traditional rehabilitation. Furthermore, two functional parameters were implemented in order to assess patient's performance of the sessions: normalized trajectory lengths and repeatability.

Quantitative assessment based on kinematic measures of functional impairments during upper extremity movements: A review.

Background: Quantitative measures of human movement quality are important for discriminating healthy and pathological conditions and for expressing the outcomes and clinically important changes in subjects' functional state. However the most frequently used instruments for the upper extremity functional assessment are clinical scales, that previously have been standardized and validated, but have a high subjective component depending on the observer who scores the test. But they are not enough to assess motor strategies used during movements, and their use in combination with other more objective measures is necessary.

Kinematic metrics based on the virtual reality system Toyra as an assessment of the upper limb rehabilitation in people with spinal cord injury.

The aim of this study was to develop new strategies based on virtual reality that can provide additional information to clinicians for the rehabilitation assessment. Virtual reality system Toyra has been used to record kinematic information of 15 patients with cervical spinal cord injury (SCI) while performing evaluation sessions using the mentioned system. Positive correlation, with a moderate and very strong association, has been found between clinical scales and kinematic data, considering only the subscales more closely related to the upper limb function.

A novel motion tracking system for evaluation of functional rehabilitation of the upper limbs.

Upper limb function impairment is one of the most common sequelae of central nervous system injury, especially in stroke patients and when spinal cord injury produces tetraplegia. Conventional assessment methods cannot provide objective evaluation of patient performance and the tiveness of therapies. The most common assessment tools are based on rating scales, which are inefficient when measuring small changes and can yield subjective bias.