Assessment of the Patient’s Emotional Response with the RobHand Rehabilitation Platform: A Case Series Study

Abstract

Cerebrovascular accidents have physical, cognitive and emotional effects. During rehabilitation, the main focus is placed on motor recovery, yet the patient’s emotional state should also be considered. For this reason, validating robotic rehabilitation systems should not only focus on their effectiveness related to the physical recovery but also on the patient’s emotional response. A case series study has been conducted with five stroke patients to assess their emotional response towards therapies using RobHand, a robotic hand rehabilitation platform. Emotional state was evaluated in three dimensions (arousal, valence and dominance) using a computer-based Self-Assessment Manikin (SAM) test. It was verified that the emotions induced by the RobHand platform were successfully distributed in the three-dimensional emotional space. The increase in dominance and the decrease in arousal during sessions reflects that patients had become familiar with the rehabilitation platform, resulting in an increased feeling of control and finding the platform less attractive. The results also reflect that patients found a therapy based on a virtual environment with a realistic scenario more pleasant and attractive.

A Versatile Embedded Platform for Implementation of Biocooperative Control in Upper-Limb Neuromotor Rehabilitation Scenarios

“…EMG has also been used to identify fatigue during rehabilitation [13], [69] and even emotional states [17], [19]- [21]. Although there is no consensus as to which physiological signals are the best to use to determine the psychophysiological state, measurements of the SCR frequency, SCL, HR and SKT can give reliable information about the psychophysiological state of the patient [36], [70].…”

“…The second proposed rehabilitation scenario is the implementation of an AAN strategy that adjusts the level of assistance of a wrist rehabilitation robot according to the emotional state of the patient and the motor performance. The 3-DoF wrist rehabilitation robot has one encoder for each degree and a cylindrical handle with a force sensor [36] for biomechanical measurements and thus determination of the user performance.…”

Interaction with a Hand Rehabilitation Exoskeleton in EMG-Driven Bilateral Therapy: Influence of Visual Biofeedback on the Users’ Performance

“…For instance, Figure 2 shows that when the duty cycle changes to 0% the actuator starts moving so the exoskeleton reaches the closed gesture (MCP joint angle of −78°). Similarly, when the duty cycle changes to 100%, the actuator starts moving in the way of opening the hand exoskeleton (MCP joint angle of 2°) [ 56 ]. Further details regarding the electronic design and operation of the real-time system, including the custom-made EMG acquisition system, microcontroller and actuators can be found in Cisnal et al [ 54 ].…”

Hand rehabilitation based on the RobHand exoskeleton in stroke patients: A case series study

“…Four types of rehabilitation exercises are available: i) Squeeze oranges ( Figure 2C )—flexion and extension of the hand fingers with the aim making orange juice ii) Hand opening and closing—flexion and extension of the five hand fingers simultaneously iii) Fingers opening and closing—flexion and extension of hand fingers individually iv) Pinch grip and precision grip—flexion and extension of the thumb against the four fingers or against the index finger. The therapist can also define a comfortable ROM (maximum and minimum MCP angles for each finger) for performing therapies according to the patient’s residual skill ( Cisnal et al., 2022 ). All data is store in a local database and the therapist can review the therapy history of each patient.…”

“…Rehabilitation therapies based on virtual reality have been found less boring than conventional therapies ( Cisnal et al., 2022 ). They provide motivation to post-stroke patients ( Loureiro et al., 2004 ; Flores et al., 2009 ), resulting in a more effective rehabilitation because patients are more likely to continue with therapy ( Cameirao et al., 2007 ; Corbetta et al., 2015 ).…”