Assessing Mechanisms of Recovery During Robot-Aided Neurorehabilitation of the Upper Limb
By Colombo, R., MEng; Pisano, F., MD; Micera, S., PhD; Mazzone, A.; Delconte, C., PT; Carozza, M. C., PhD; Dario, P.; Minuco, G., MEng; Neurorehabilitation and Neural Repair, Vol. 22, No. 1, pp. 50-63Publication Date: January/February 2008
Study examines different components of motor recovery in patients who received robot-assisted therapy following stroke. Twenty-two patients were included in the study; nine were within the first 6 months after stroke (recent) and 13 were in the chronic stage. Participants performed a sequence of point-to-point reaching movements using an elbow-shoulder manipulator named MEMOS (MEchatronic system for MOtor recovery after Stroke). Evaluations completed at the beginning and end of treatment included: (1)standard clinical assessment scales including the Motor Power Score (MPS), the Motor Status Score (MSS), and the Fugl-Meyer (FM) scale; and (2) a robot-measured evaluation method that assessed the following motor recovery components: movement efficacy, movement accuracy, movement efficiency, movement smoothness, movement speed, and force control. Analysis of variance was conducted to assess the difference in change of measured parameters and clinical scales among recent versus chronic patients and repeated measures. Results indicated that motor training consisting of voluntary movement assisted by a robotic device led to significant improvement in kinematic and dynamic components of arm movement. This corresponded with significant improvement in the MPS, MSS, and FM clinical scale values in both recent and chronic patients. Recent patients demonstrated a greater improvement in the clinical scales than chronic patients.
Published by: Sage Publications (Website:http://www.sagepub.com)
American Society of Neurorehabilitation (Web Site: http://www.asnr.com )
