Abstract TP218: Use Of A Tablet Device application (iNeglect) to evaluate Neglect patients

But, but what about your grandma of 90 who has never used a computer or cell phone.
http://stroke.ahajournals.org/cgi/content/meeting_abstract/44/2_MeetingAbstracts/ATP218
Background: Patients with unilateral neglect after the right hemispheric lesion fail to respond normally to stimuli on the left side. Several paper-based tests for detecting neglect had been widely used. Here, we developed an application that runs on a tablet device to evaluate unilateral spatial neglect and investigated its feasibility in stroke patients.
Methods: We enrolled acute ischemic stroke patients with neglect (n = 20) who had at least one of visual, auditory or tactile extinction. By comparison, stroke patients who had cortical lesions without neglect (n = 10), and healthy controls (n = 10) were recruited. The iNeglect application running on the iPad device was developed. In the table setting test of the iNeglect, the subjects were requested to drag the 12 food items on the table, and the deviation of each item from the midline was measured automatically. Line bisection tests using paper or iPad were also performed and compared.
Results: Among neglect patients, mean deviation to the right side were 2.03 ± 2.11 mm of line bisection on paper, 18.47 ± 20.89 mm of line bisection on iPad, and 15.79 ± 18.17 mm of the table setting test. Patients with neglect showed larger deviation to the right side; in line bisection on paper (compared without neglect, p = 0.016 and control, p &lt0.001), line bisection on iPad (compared without neglect, p = 0.053 and control, p = 0.009), and table setting test (0.80 ± 7.38 mm of without neglect, p = 0.004 and -2.93 ± 6.78 mm of healthy control, p = 0.001). Results of table setting test was well correlated with that of line bisection tests on paper (r = 0.487, p&lt0.001) and iPad (r = 0.511, p&lt0.001).
Conclusions: The iNeglect application was feasible in discriminating the patients with neglect and recognizing the right side deviation. The iNeglect application might be helpful to evaluate neglect patients and to objectify neurological deficit.