Text input speed in persons with cervical spinal cord injury

Abstract

Study design: This is a prospective clinical study. Objectives: The objectives of this study were to determine text input speed (TIS) in persons with cervical spinal cord injury (SCI) and to study the influence of personal characteristics and type of computer access device on TIS. Setting: This study was conducted in the Rehabilitation Department, Garches, France. Methods: People with cervical SCI were included if their level of injury was between C4 and C8 Asia A or B, and if they were computer users. In addition, able-bodied people were recruited from the hospital staff. Each participant underwent a single evaluation using their usual computer access devices. TIS was evaluated during a 10-min copying task. The relationship between the characteristics of participants with cervical SCI, type of computer access device and TIS were analyzed using a Scheirer-Ray-Hare test (nonparametric test similar to a two-way analysis of variance). Results: Thirty-five participants with cervical SCI and 21 able-bodied people were included. Median TIS of participants with cervical SCI was 9 (6; 14) words per minute (w.p.m.) and of able-bodied participants was 19 (14; 24) w.p.m. (P = 0.001). Median TIS of participants with lesions at or above C5 was 12 (4; 13) w.p.m. and of those with lesions below C5 was 10 (9; 18) w.p.m. (P = 0.38). The Scheirer-Ray-Hare test showed that only the type of computer access device significantly influenced TIS. Surprisingly, none of the person's characteristics, including the level of cervical lesion, affected TIS. Conclusion: This is the first study to analyze TIS in a group of participants with cervical SCI. The results showed that only the type of computer access device influenced TIS.

Computer and internet use among people with long-standing spinal cord injury: a cross-sectional survey in the Netherlands

“…This may be due to the few people with a level of SCI above C4 in our study. Nevertheless, such devices may make Internet use easier [23,24]. May be the accessibility options of modern computers, such as standard voice activation and touch screens, have limited the need for special assistive devices for most people with a limited hand function.…”

Identification of clinically related requirements of a novel assistive device for people with a high spinal cord injury

“…However, the use of speech-recognition software and head or mouth controls was low, probably because few people with C4 SCI were included in the study. In the United States, a study [5, 6] conducted between 2003 and 2006 showed that only 35% of participants with tetraplegia used an assistive device to enable computer and Internet use, despite the ability of these devices to facilitate Internet use [7, 8]. These studies highlight the need for novel interfaces that compensate for loss of body functions by utilizing other available input sources for control [7].…”