The existing shortage of therapists and caregivers assisting physically disabled individuals at home is expected to increase and become serious problem in the near future The patient population needing physical rehabilitation of the upper extremity is also constantly increasing Robotic devices have the potential to address this problem as noted by the results of recent research studies However, the availability of these devices in clinical settings is limited, leaving plenty of room for improvement The purpose of this paper is to document a review of robotic devices for upper limb rehabilitation including those in developing phase in order to provide a comprehensive reference about existing solutions and facilitate the development of new and improved devices In particular the following issues are discussed: application field, target group, type of assistance, mechanical design, control strategy and clinical evaluation This paper also includes a comprehensive, tabulated comparison of technical solutions implemented in various systems

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A survey on robotic devices for upper limb rehabilitation

Hand movement data acquisition is used in many engineering applications ranging from the analysis of gestures to the biomedical sciences. Glove-based systems represent one of the most important efforts aimed at acquiring hand movement data. While they have been around for over three decades, they keep attracting the interest of researchers from increasingly diverse fields. This paper surveys such glove systems and their applications. It also analyzes the characteristics of the devices, provides a road map of the evolution of the technology, and discusses limitations of current technology and trends at the frontiers of research. A foremost goal of this paper is to provide readers who are new to the area with a basis for understanding glove systems technology and how it can be applied, while offering specialists an updated picture of the breadth of applications in several engineering and biomedical sciences areas.

A Survey of Glove-Based Systems and Their Applications

The existing shortage of therapists and caregivers assisting physically disabled individuals at home is expected to increase and become serious problem in the near future. The patient population needing physical rehabilitation of the upper extremity is also constantly increasing. Robotic devices have the potential to address this problem as noted by the results of recent research studies. However, the availability of these devices in clinical settings is limited, leaving plenty of room for improvement. The purpose of this paper is to document a review of robotic devices for upper limb rehabilitation including those in developing phase in order to provide a comprehensive reference about existing solutions and facilitate the development of new and improved devices. In particular the following issues are discussed: application field, target group, type of assistance, mechanical design, control strategy and clinical evaluation. This paper also includes a comprehensive, tabulated comparison of technical solutions implemented in various systems.

A survey on robotic devices for upper limb

Recent experimental evidence suggests that rapid advancement of virtual reality (VR) technologies has great potential for the development of novel strategies for sensorimotor training in neurorehabilitation. We discuss what the adaptive and engaging virtual environments can provide for massive and intensive sensorimotor stimulation needed to induce brain reorganization.Second, discrepancies between the veridical and virtual feedback can be introduced in VR to facilitate activation of targeted brain networks, which in turn can potentially speed up the recovery process. Here we review the existing experimental evidence regarding the beneficial effects of training in virtual environments on the recovery of function in the areas of gait,upper extremity function and balance, in various patient populations. We also discuss possible mechanisms underlying these effects. We feel that future research in the area of virtual rehabilitation should follow several important paths. Imaging studies to evaluate the effects of sensory manipulation on brain activation patterns and the effect of various training parameters on long term changes in brain function are needed to guide future clinical inquiry. Larger clinical studies are also needed to establish the efficacy of sensorimotor rehabilitation using VR in various clinical populations and most importantly, to identify VR training parameters that are associated with optimal transfer to real-world functional improvements.

/pdf/sensorimotor-training-in-virtual-reality-a-review-5e5hzosgrv.pdf

Sensorimotor training in virtual reality: a review.

Haptic gloves open up the world of force feedback by allowing the user to pick up and feel virtual objects in a natural way. In most of the existing gloves, a remote box houses a large number of actuators and sensors. Power to the glove is transmitted via cables. If the haptic gloves were smaller, lighter, and easier to use and control, they could become more common as human-machine interfaces. Recent developments show that actuators based on active fluids, such as the magnetorheological (MR) fluids, can be viable alternatives in haptics. But these devices are desk- or floor-mounted and use relatively large MR brakes. In this research, we developed a compact MR brake that is about 25 mm in diameter, weighs 84 g, and can apply up to 899 Nmiddotmm torque. The compact size was achieved by stacking steel and aluminum rings to create a serpentine flux path through the fluid. Six brakes were used to build a force feedback glove called MR glove. The glove weighs 640 g and does not require any remote actuators. Results of usability experiments showed that the MR glove improved task completion times in grasping virtual objects and could convey stiffness information to the user.

Haptic Glove With MR Brakes for Virtual Reality

Magnetorheological fluid (MRF) is a smart material that has the property of changing its viscosity when exposed to a magnetic field. By placing this fluid into a sealed cylinder with an electromagnet piston as a core, a controllable resistance motion dampener can be created. A novel exoskeleton mechanical power transmission system was designed, utilizing rapid prototype parts, to transmit these resistive forces to the user's fingertips. A first iteration force feedback glove was developed and tested on human subjects for overall usability. The eventual goal of the system is to provide an alternative force producing system for exercises and rehabilitation. The entire system is lightweight, low power, and easily portable

Use of Magnetorheological Fluid in a Force Feedback Glove

Carpal tunnel syndrome is caused by the compression of the median nerve as it transits the carpal tunnel, with an incidence of about 1% of the population. If surgery is needed, the treatment involves decompression of the median nerve followed sometimes by musculoskeletal outpatient rehabilitation. This paper presents a proof-of-concept pilot clinical trial in which the Rutgers Masters II haptic glove was tested on five subjects, who were two weeks post-hand surgery. Subjects trained for 13 sessions, 30 min per session, three sessions per week, and had no conventional outpatient therapy. Computerized measures of performance showed group effects in hand mechanical energy (1200% for the virtual ball squeezing and DigiKey exercises and 600% for the power putty exercise). Improvement in their hand function was also observed (a 38% reduction in virtual pegboard errors, and 70% fewer virtual hand ball errors). Clinical strength measures showed increases in grip (by up to 150%) and key pinch (up to 46%) strength in three of the subjects, while two subjects had decreased strength following the study. However, all five subjects improved in their tip pinch strength of their affected hand (between 20%-267%). When asked whether they would recommend the virtual reality exercises to others, four subjects very strongly agreed and one strongly agreed that they would

/pdf/telerehabilitation-using-the-rutgers-master-ii-glove-3bt2o697sr.pdf

Telerehabilitation Using the Rutgers Master II Glove Following Carpal Tunnel Release Surgery: Proof-of-Concept

Abstract Pfizer-BioNTech BNT162b2 is one of the three U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved vaccines for the prevention of COVID-19. Its most common side effect, injection site pain, occurs because of locally recruited inflammatory mediators and is mitigated by the lymphatic system. Side effects may discourage individuals from receiving vaccines; therefore, reducing the duration of injection site pain can promote vaccination compliance. Osteopathic manipulative treatments (OMT) can directly affect the physiology underlying muscle soreness; however, there is currently no literature that supports the use of OMT in this scenario. In this case report, an otherwise healthy male presented with acute left deltoid soreness after receiving the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine. The pain began 5 h prior to the visit. Three hours after being treated with lymphatic OMT, the severity of the pain was significantly reduced and was alleviated 8h after onset in comparison to the median duration of 24–48 h. He received his second dose 3 weeks later. This case report can provide future studies with the groundwork for further investigating the role of OMT in treating postvaccination muscle soreness, which can improve patient satisfaction and potentially promote vaccination compliance.

S.H. Winter

Papers

Use of Magnetorheological Fluid in a Force Feedback Glove

Telerehabilitation Using the Rutgers Master II Glove Following Carpal Tunnel Release Surgery: Proof-of-Concept

Lymphatic osteopathic manipulative treatment reduces duration of deltoid soreness after Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine