Examination of the Effect of Rehabili-Mouse, a Desktop Rehabilitation Robot for Upper Limb Paresis after Stroke

Kinda cool, probably not that expensive.

Examination of the Effect of Rehabili-Mouse, a Desktop Rehabilitation Robot for Upper Limb Paresis after Stroke

Rena Wakabayashi^1*, Kimio Saito², Toshiki Matsunaga², Satoaki Chida², Kai Kagami², Takehiro Iwami³, Satoru Kizawa⁴, Yuki Terata⁵, Masumi Ogasawara⁶, Yoichi Shimada⁷, Naohisa Miyakoshi^1
1Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Akita University Graduate School of Medicine, Akita, Japan.
²Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Akita University Hospital, Akita, Japan.
³Department of Mechanical Engineering, Akita University, Akita, Japan.
⁴National Institute of Technology, Akita College, Akita, Japan.
⁵Faculty of Systems Science and Technology, Akita Prefectural University, Akita, Japan.
⁶Oyu Rehabilitation Hot-Spring Hospital, Kazuno, Japan.
⁷Akita Prefectural Center on Development and Disability, Akita, Japan.
DOI: 10.4236/ojo.2021.1112035   PDF   HTML   XML   27 Downloads   128 Views  

Abstract

Background:  

Active rehabilitation of the paralyzed limb is necessary for functional recovery from upper limb paralysis after stroke. In particular, the amount of training is very important, and robot rehabilitation is useful. However, most conventional robots are expensive, large, and stationary. We have developed Rehabili-Mouse, a new tabletop rehabilitation robot that is compact and portable. The purpose of this study was to conduct paralyzed upper limb training for a patient after stroke using Rehabili-Mouse and to examine its effect. 

 Case: 

 The patient was a 44-year-old man who had left-sided paresis after a right cerebral infarction, 3 months after onset. The training was carried out between February 2021 and March 2021 at Oyu Rehabilitation Hotspring Hospital. The training was 20 minutes of Rehabili-Mouse in addition to 40 minutes of usual occupational therapy and performed five times a week for four weeks. Upper limb functions were evaluated before and after the training, and two questionnaires of patient satisfaction with the device and the training were administered after the completion of the training. Upper limb function improved. The patient’s satisfaction with the device was poor, but his satisfaction with the training was good.  

Discussion: Training for the paralyzed upper limb after stroke using Rehabili-Mouse improved upper limb function and satisfied the trained patient. We plan to increase the number of cases and conduct further studies.

Keywords

Robotic Rehabilitation, Hemiplegia, Upper Limb Function

Share and Cite:

Wakabayashi, R. , Saito, K. , Matsunaga, T. , Chida, S. , Kagami, K. , Iwami, T. , Kizawa, S. , Terata, Y. , Ogasawara, M. , Shimada, Y. and Miyakoshi, N. (2021) Examination of the Effect of Rehabili-Mouse, a Desktop Rehabilitation Robot for Upper Limb Paresis after Stroke. Open Journal of Orthopedics, 11, 371-382. doi: 10.4236/ojo.2021.1112035.

1. Introduction

Stroke is a disease that causes severe functional declines in physical and cognitive functions, and about 70% of survivors have temporary upper limb dysfunction [1]. Of these, only about 15% are reported to have useful upper limb function, [2] and upper limb paralysis leads to a decrease in quality of life (QOL) [3]. Therefore, active rehabilitation of the paralyzed limb is necessary for functional recovery from upper limb paralysis caused by stroke. In particular, the amount of training is very important [4] [5], and robotic rehabilitation is considered to be useful in this regard [6].

Previous reports have indicated that assist-as-needed type training tasks encourage upper limb participation and increase the number of training repetitions [7]. In fact, in stroke patients, it has been shown that the higher the intensity of upper limb robot treatment, the better the upper limb function [8]. Furthermore, the combination of upper limb robot treatment and conventional rehabilitation treatment is reportedly more effective than either treatment alone [9], and robot rehabilitation for paralyzed limbs is being put to practical use. It is also expected to be applied in clinics and for home use as an alternative or superior method to the conventional approach [10].

Rehabilitation robots can perform training and evaluation simultaneously. Their advantages as training devices are that they are good at repetitive movements and adjusting tasks according to the patient’s ability. Their advantages as measurement devices are that they are easy to program, the results are objective and accurate, and the difficulty of the task can be easily adjusted based on external disturbances [11]. It has also been reported that they can provide a standardized environment and reduce the burden on therapists [12]. Furthermore, conventional rehabilitation methods often involve repetitive daily tasks, which may cause patients to lose interest in the treatment [13]. Rehabilitation using games not only improves physical functions, but also has psychological effects, leading to motivation to use the paralyzed limb and achieve goals in real life [14], and robot rehabilitation is considered useful in this respect as well.

However, most conventional robots are expensive, large, and stationary, which are barriers to the introduction of robotic rehabilitation. Therefore, we developed a new type of tabletop rehabilitation robot, “Rehabili-Mouse”, which is compact and portable, and it can be easily used on a desktop to rehabilitate upper limb paresis [15].

The purpose of this study was to examine the therapeutic effects of paralyzed upper limb training using the Rehabili-Mouse in a subacute and chronic stroke patient with upper limb paralysis.

More at link.

What it looks like:

Rehabili-Mouse, our upper limb rehabilitation robot: disk-shaped, approximately 300 mm in diameter, 150 mm in height, and 7.0 kg in weight.