A Wearable Multi-Site System for NMES-Based Hand Function Restoration
(2018) In IEEE Transactions on Neural Systems and Rehabilitation Engineering 26(2). p.428-440- Abstract
Reaching and grasping impairments significantly affect the quality of life for people who have experienced a stroke or spinal cord injury. The long-term well-being of patients varies greatly according to the restorable residual capabilities. Electrical stimulation could be a promising solution to restore motor functions in these conditions, but its use is not clinically widespread. Here, we introduce the HandNMES, an electrode array (EA) for neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) aimed at grasp training and assistance. The device was designed to deliver electrical stimulation to extrinsic and intrinsic hand muscles. Six independent EAs, positioned on the user forearm and hand, deliver NMES pulses originating from an external... (More)
Reaching and grasping impairments significantly affect the quality of life for people who have experienced a stroke or spinal cord injury. The long-term well-being of patients varies greatly according to the restorable residual capabilities. Electrical stimulation could be a promising solution to restore motor functions in these conditions, but its use is not clinically widespread. Here, we introduce the HandNMES, an electrode array (EA) for neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) aimed at grasp training and assistance. The device was designed to deliver electrical stimulation to extrinsic and intrinsic hand muscles. Six independent EAs, positioned on the user forearm and hand, deliver NMES pulses originating from an external stimulator equipped with demultiplexers for interfacing with a large number of electrodes. The garment was designed to be adaptable to user needs and anthropometric characteristics; size, shape, and contact materials can be customized, and stimulation characteristics such as intensity of stimulation and virtual electrode location, and size can be adjusted. We performed extensive tests with nine healthy subjects showing the efficacy of the HandNMES in terms of stimulation performance and personalization. Because encouraging results were achieved, in the coming months, the HandNMES device will be tested in pilot clinical trials.
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- author
- Crema, Andrea ; Malešević, Nebojša LU ; Furfaro, Ivan ; Raschellà, Flavio ; Pedrocchi, Alessandra and Micera, Silvestro
- organization
- publishing date
- 2018-02-01
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- electrode array, grasp, hand, NMES
- in
- IEEE Transactions on Neural Systems and Rehabilitation Engineering
- volume
- 26
- issue
- 2
- article number
- 7924329
- pages
- 13 pages
- publisher
- IEEE - Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.
- external identifiers
-
- pmid:28500007
- scopus:85042047758
- ISSN
- 1534-4320
- DOI
- 10.1109/TNSRE.2017.2703151
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- 7bb23a52-4017-414e-988f-fb55805b1706
- date added to LUP
- 2018-03-07 08:54:05
- date last changed
- 2024-04-15 03:20:03
@article{7bb23a52-4017-414e-988f-fb55805b1706,
abstract = {{<p>Reaching and grasping impairments significantly affect the quality of life for people who have experienced a stroke or spinal cord injury. The long-term well-being of patients varies greatly according to the restorable residual capabilities. Electrical stimulation could be a promising solution to restore motor functions in these conditions, but its use is not clinically widespread. Here, we introduce the HandNMES, an electrode array (EA) for neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) aimed at grasp training and assistance. The device was designed to deliver electrical stimulation to extrinsic and intrinsic hand muscles. Six independent EAs, positioned on the user forearm and hand, deliver NMES pulses originating from an external stimulator equipped with demultiplexers for interfacing with a large number of electrodes. The garment was designed to be adaptable to user needs and anthropometric characteristics; size, shape, and contact materials can be customized, and stimulation characteristics such as intensity of stimulation and virtual electrode location, and size can be adjusted. We performed extensive tests with nine healthy subjects showing the efficacy of the HandNMES in terms of stimulation performance and personalization. Because encouraging results were achieved, in the coming months, the HandNMES device will be tested in pilot clinical trials.</p>}},
author = {{Crema, Andrea and Malešević, Nebojša and Furfaro, Ivan and Raschellà, Flavio and Pedrocchi, Alessandra and Micera, Silvestro}},
issn = {{1534-4320}},
keywords = {{electrode array; grasp; hand; NMES}},
language = {{eng}},
month = {{02}},
number = {{2}},
pages = {{428--440}},
publisher = {{IEEE - Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.}},
series = {{IEEE Transactions on Neural Systems and Rehabilitation Engineering}},
title = {{A Wearable Multi-Site System for NMES-Based Hand Function Restoration}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/TNSRE.2017.2703151}},
doi = {{10.1109/TNSRE.2017.2703151}},
volume = {{26}},
year = {{2018}},
}