Effects of non-invasive brain stimulation for upper limb rehabilitation in acute stroke patients – A controlled clinical trial

2017 ◽  
Vol 381 ◽  
pp. 839
Author(s):  
K.H. Wong
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Trial ◽  
Acute Stroke ◽  
Upper Limb ◽  
Brain Stimulation ◽  
Controlled Clinical Trial ◽  
Stroke Patients ◽  
Upper Limb Rehabilitation ◽  
Non Invasive ◽  
Limb Rehabilitation

CONTROL OF FOREARM MODULE IN UPPER-LIMB REHABILITATION ROBOT FOR REDUCTION AND BIOMECHANICAL ASSESSMENT OF PRONATOR HYPERTONIA OF STROKE PATIENTS

2016 ◽  
Vol 16 (02) ◽  
pp. 1650008 ◽  
Author(s):  
PIN-CHENG KUNG ◽  
CHOU-CHING K. LIN ◽  
SHU-MIN CHEN ◽  
MING-SHAUNG JU
Keyword(s):  
Upper Limb ◽  
Position Control ◽  
Biomechanical Properties ◽  
Torque Control ◽  
Rehabilitation Robot ◽  
Stroke Patients ◽  
Upper Limb Rehabilitation ◽  
Biomechanical Assessment ◽  
Custom Made ◽  
Limb Rehabilitation

Spastic hypertonia causes loss of range of motion (ROM) and contractures in patients with post-stroke hemiparesis. The pronation/supination of the forearm is an essential functional movement in daily activities. We developed a special module for a shoulder-elbow rehabilitation robot for the reduction and biomechanical assessment of pronator/supinator hypertonia of the forearm. The module consisted of a rotational drum driven by an AC servo motor and equipped with an encoder and a custom-made torque sensor. By properly switching the control algorithm between position control and torque control, a hybrid controller able to mimic a therapist’s manual stretching movements was designed. Nine stroke patients were recruited to validate the functions of the module. The results showed that the affected forearms had significant increases in the ROM after five cycles of stretching. Both the passive ROM and the average stiffness were highly correlated to the spasticity of the forearm flexor muscles as measured using the Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS). With the custom-made module and controller, this upper-limb rehabilitation robot may be able to aid physical therapists to reduce hypertonia and quantify biomechanical properties of the muscles for forearm rotation in stroke patients.

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