Ranges of motion as basis for robot-assisted poststroke

Background: Stroke is a highly disabling disease, requiring a long and costly rehabilitation. Rehabilitation robots might represent a cost-effective solution. The present technical means for rehabilitation don't match all the requirements for post-stroke recovery. This work describes the analysis of human motion ranges aiming at the design of a cost-oriented and user-friendly post stroke robotic rehabilitation solution. Materials and method: The study was performed on a group of 21 patients, 11 females and 10 males, matched with the ischemic stroke affected population from the point of view of age and comorbidities. The motion range measurements were made using a standard goniometer. Shoulder flexion, extension, abduction, adduction, elbow flexion, pronation, supination, wrist flexion and extension, metacarpal-phalangeal, proximal and distal inter-phalangeal flexion was measured, in a comparative fashion for the right and left side, for males and females and for elderly and young patients. Results: First, no significant side-dependent differences were identified. Sex seems to have an importance: female subjects having a significantly higher motion range for some of the measured joints. Age impacts the motion amplitude also, elderly having stiffer joints, lower motion ranges. Conclusion: The results of this preliminary analysis underline the necessity of developing an open ongoing database to refine the exact motion ranges, and the main effects influencing these intervals in order to get a feasible input for a biomechanical motion concept of a future rehabilitation robot.