Perspectives of users for a future interactive wearable system for upper extremity rehabilitation following stroke: a qualitative study

Journal of NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation

Research

W. Ben Mortenson¹  Janice J. Eng²  Amir Servati³  Peyman Servati³  Arvin Tashakori³  Chieh-ling Yang⁴  Rochelle Chui⁵ 

[1] Centre for Aging SMART at Vancouver Coastal Health, Vancouver, BC, Canada;Department of Occupational Sciences and Occupational Therapy, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada;International Collaboration on Repair Discoveries, Vancouver, Canada;Centre for Aging SMART at Vancouver Coastal Health, Vancouver, BC, Canada;Department of Physical Therapy, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada;Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada;Department of Occupational Therapy and Graduate Institute of Behavioral Sciences, College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan City, Taiwan;Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Chiayi, Taiwan;Faculty of Applied Science and Faculty of Medicine, Undergraduate Program in Biomedical Engineering, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada;

关键词: Stroke;    Wearable technology;    Rehabilitation;    Upper limb;    Qualitative study;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12984-023-01197-6

 received in 2022-07-19, accepted in 2023-05-26,  发布年份 2023

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundWearable sensor technology can facilitate diagnostics and monitoring of people with upper extremity (UE) paresis after stroke. The purpose of this study is to investigate the perspectives of clinicians, people living with stroke, and their caregivers on an interactive wearable system that detects UE movements and provides feedback.MethodsThis qualitative study used semi-structured interviews relating to the perspectives of a future interactive wearable system including a wearable sensor to capture UE movement and a user interface to provide feedback as the means of data collection. Ten rehabilitation therapists, 9 people with stroke, and 2 caregivers participated in this study.ResultsFour themes were identified (1) “Everyone is different” highlighted the need for addressing individual user’s rehabilitation goal and personal preference; (2) “The wearable system should identify UE and trunk movements” emphasized that in addition to arm, hand, and finger movements, detecting compensatory trunk movements during UE movements is also of interest; (3) “Both quality and amount of movements are necessary to measure” described the parameters related to how well and how much the user is using their affected UE that participants envisioned the system to monitor; (4) “Functional activities should be practiced by the users” outlined UE movements and activities that are of priority in designing the system.ConclusionsNarratives from clinicians, people with stroke, and their caregivers offer insight into the design of interactive wearable systems. Future studies examining the experience and acceptability of existing wearable systems from end-users are warranted to guide the adoption of this technology.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© The Author(s) 2023