Kinematic parameters obtained with the ArmeoSpring for upper-limb assessment after stroke: a reliability and learning effect study for guiding parameter use

Abstract

Background After stroke, kinematic measures obtained with non-robotic and robotic devices are highly recommended to precisely quantify the sensorimotor impairments of the upper-extremity and select the most relevant therapeutic strategies. Although the ArmeoSpring exoskeleton has demonstrated its effectiveness in stroke motor rehabilitation, its interest as an assessment tool has not been sufficiently documented. The aim of this study was to investigate the psychometric properties of selected kinematic parameters obtained with the ArmeoSpring in post-stroke patients. Methods This study involved 30 post-stroke patients (mean age = 54.5 ± 16.4 years; time post-stroke = 14.7 ± 26.7 weeks; Upper-Extremity Fugl-Meyer Score (UE-FMS) = 40.7 ± 14.5/66) who participated in 3 assessment sessions, each consisting of 10 repetitions of the ‘horizontal catch’ exercise. Five kinematic parameters (task and movement time, hand path ratio, peak velocity, number of peak velocity) and a global Score were computed from raw ArmeoSpring’ data. Learning effect and retention were analyzed using a 2-way repeated-measures ANOVA, and reliability was investigated using the intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) and minimal detectable change (MDC). Results We observed significant inter- and intra-session learning effects for most parameters except peak velocity. The measures performed in sessions 2 and 3 were significantly different from those of session 1. No additional significant difference was observed after the first 6 trials of each session and successful retention was also highlighted for all the parameters. Relative reliability was moderate to excellent for all the parameters, and MDC values expressed in percentage ranged from 42.6 to 102.8%. Conclusions After a familiarization session, the ArmeoSpring can be used to reliably and sensitively assess motor impairment and intervention effects on motor learning processes after a stroke. Trial registration The study was approved by the local hospital ethics committee in September 2016 and was registered under number 05-0916.

Literature review of stroke assessment for upper-extremity physical function via EEG, EMG, kinematic, and kinetic measurements and their reliability

“…Metrics calculated from power imbalance between interhemispheric activity like BSI , pwBSI and PRI [ 62 , 73 , 124 ] are a great premise to measure how the brain relies on foreign regions to accomplish tasks related with affected areas. A battery of diverse estimators for connectivity, especially those of effective (directed) connectivity, open the door to investigations into the relationship between abnormal communication of regions of interest and impairment (see Table 5 and Table 12 in Appendix 2).…”

Psychometric properties of upper limb kinematics during functional tasks in children and adolescents with dyskinetic cerebral palsy

“…For children with hemiplegia, several studies investigated the reliability of upper limb kinematics, but all of them used a fairly small amount of repetitions, ranging from three [13,14,17] to six [18]. In stroke, the number of included repetitions differs between two and 10, with one study evaluating the effect of the number of repetitions on reliability values [31,32]. As the movement patterns of children and adolescents with DCP are characterized by involuntary movements, it is likely that more repetitions are required to properly capture and describe the most representative patient-specific motion pattern.…”

Neurorehabilitacija i robotika kod osoba s hemiparezom gornjeg ekstremiteta nakon moždanog udara

“…Ponovna uspostava funkcije gornjeg ekstremiteta jedan je od glavnih ciljeva rehabilitacije kod bolesnika nakon moždanog udara s posljedičnim razvojem hemipareze 22 33 .…”