Deans' stroke musings: Training finger individuation with a mechatronic-virtual reality system leads to improved fine motor control post-stroke

Changing stroke rehab and research worldwide now.Time is Brain! trillions and trillions of neurons that DIE each day because there are NO effective hyperacute therapies besides tPA(only 12% effective). I have 523 posts on hyperacute therapy, enough for researchers to spend decades proving them out. These are my personal ideas and blog on stroke rehabilitation and stroke research. Do not attempt any of these without checking with your medical provider. Unless you join me in agitating, when you need these therapies they won't be there.

What this blog is for:

My blog is not to help survivors recover, it is to have the 10 million yearly stroke survivors light fires underneath their doctors, stroke hospitals and stroke researchers to get stroke solved. 100% recovery. The stroke medical world is completely failing at that goal, they don't even have it as a goal. Shortly after getting out of the hospital and getting NO information on the process or protocols of stroke rehabilitation and recovery I started searching on the internet and found that no other survivor received useful information. This is an attempt to cover all stroke rehabilitation information that should be readily available to survivors so they can talk with informed knowledge to their medical staff. It lays out what needs to be done to get stroke survivors closer to 100% recovery. It's quite disgusting that this information is not available from every stroke association and doctors group.

Tuesday, February 10, 2015

Training finger individuation with a mechatronic-virtual reality system leads to improved fine motor control post-stroke

I have no finger individuation so I'll have to look at this more closely.
http://search.naric.com/research/rehab/redesign_record.cfm?search=2&type=all&criteria=J70148&phrase=no&rec=126485
NARIC Accession Number: J70148. What's this?
ISSN: 1743-0003.
Author(s): Thielbar, Kelly O.; Lord, Thomas J.; Fischer, Heidi C.; Lazzaro, Emily C.; Barth, Kristin C.; Stoykov, Mary E.; Triandafilou, Kristen M.; Kamper, Derek.
Project Number: H133E070013.
Publication Year: 2014.
Number of Pages: 24.
Abstract: Study investigated the impact of finger individuation training using a novel mechatronic-virtual reality system on fine motor control after stroke. An actuated virtual keypad (AVK) system was developed in which the impaired hand controls a virtual hand playing a set of keys. Creation of individuated digit movements is assisted by a pneumatically actuated glove. Fourteen subjects with chronic hand impairment resulting from a single stroke incurred at least 6 months prior underwent 18 hour-long sessions of extensive therapy (3 times per week for 6 weeks) targeted at finger individuation. Subjects were randomly divided into two groups: one group utilized the AVK system (AVK group) while the other group received a similarly intensive dose of occupational therapy (OT group). Outcome measures including the Jebsen-Taylor Hand Function Test, Action research Arm Test, Fugl-Meyer Upper Extremity Motor Assessment/Hand subcomponent, grip and pinch strengths were collected at baseline, post-treatment and one-month post-treatment. While both groups exhibited some signs of change after the training sessions, only the AVK group displayed statistically significant improvement both for measures of impairment and measures of task performance. Additionally, the finger individuation index (a measure of finger independence) improved only for the AVK group after training in the subset of these participants for which it was measured. Actively assisted individuation therapy comprised of non-task-specific modalities, such as can be achieved with virtual platforms like the AVK described here, may prove to be valuable clinical tools for increasing the effectiveness and efficiency of therapy following stroke.