Development of a new haptic perception instrument: a pilot study

Abstract

Currently, therapists have difficulty assessing and describing hand sensory deficits. The gold-standard tool to quantify hand tactile sensitivity is the esthesiometer. The Semmes-Weinstein esthesiometer presents nylon monofilaments of approximately the same length and of varying diameters. The diameter and length are used to control the force applied. The minimal diameter detected is used to classify the sensory function 1 . However, not only tactile sensitivity, but also the ability to detect weight and compressibility variations are involved in hand function.The sensation of touch on skin is provided by mechanoreceptors in the epidermis and dermis skin layers. There are four types of mechanoreceptors: Merkel receptors detect pressure from small objects, on a frequency between 0.3 and 3.0 Hz. Meissner corpuscles detect flutter, e.g. when rubbing objects against the skin or skin movement across a surface, on a frequency between 3.0 to 40.0 Hz. Ruffini cylinders detect pressure and stretching of the skin, on higher frequencies, between 15.0 and 400.0 Hz 2 . Merkel disks and Ruffini cylinders are associated with slowly adapting fibers that respond as long as the stimulus is present. Meissner corpuscles respond to stimulation with a burst of firing at the beginning and end of stimulation, therefore, they are called rapidly adapting fibers AbstrACtObjective: Hand sensory tests do not consider distinct physiological receptors, nor detect normal range variations concerning developmental or pathological changes. We developed an instrument with a set of tests with timing and scoring for assessing haptic perception, which is the interaction between sensory and motor systems, in surfaces exploration, by moving hands. Method: Firstly, group meetings were set for test/manual conception and materials testing. The test/manual were submitted to 30 reviewers in 3 stages (10 reviewers on each stage). Results: The Hand Haptic Perception Instrument (HHPI) evaluates hand sensorimotor performance on six domains: depression, elevation, texture, compressibility, weight (barognosis) and form perception. Each domain requires specific materials. Score ranges from 0 to 57, being 0 the worst rating. Conclusion: This methodological process allowed the development of six domains and instructions to assess haptic perception. This version of HHPI is a pilot model. Further studies will determine reliability and normality ranges.Keywords: touch perception, form perception, weight perception, evaluation, hands. resumo Objetivo: Testes de sensibilidade manual não consideram receptores fisiológicos distintos, tampouco variações do desenvolvimento normal ou patológico. Desenvolvemos um instrumento, com pontuação e tempo de desempenho, para avaliar percepção háptica, que é a interação sensório-motora na exploração de superfícies, pelo movimento das mãos. Método: Reuniões de grupo foram estabelecidas para desenvolver os testes/manual e testar materiais. O instrumento e seu manual foram submetidos a 30 revisores, em 3 estágios (com 10 revisores em cad...

Testing for haptic perception

“…I n this edition of Arquivos de Neuropsiquiatria Nascimento et al 1 present the results of a group effort in the development of a scale to measure haptic perception. Haptic perception is the "extraction of information about an object's properties such as its size, shape, and texture by means of exploratory manual movements" 2 .…”

“…Proficiency in various manual professional tasks is highly dependent on haptic perception, ranging from lifting boxes on a supermarket 6 to performing exceedingly complex minimally invasive surgery 7 . Nascimento et al 1 developed a tool which they called the Hand Haptic Perception Instrument (HHPI) and which is designed for an extensive evaluation of haptic perception, using widely available materials, in a standardized fashion. The article describes the process of development of the tool, which is yet to be tested in the field.…”

Validade e confiabilidade de software com realidade virtual como tecnologia assistiva para pessoas com distrofia muscular de Duchenne

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Avaliação do desempenho de universitários no teste háptico manual de alto relevo com formas geométricas (HP-hrg)

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