Use of an actuated glove to facilitate hand rehabilitation after stroke

Abstract

Stroke survivors often experience long-term upper extremity impairment. This can greatly impair activities of daily living. Repetitive practice of task-oriented training is thought to be beneficial for rehabilitation, but task practice can be limited by poor hand motor control. The objective of this study is to use a soft robotic glove to facilitate hand therapy of stroke survivors. Participants, all of whom will have experienced a stroke less than one year prior to enrollment, will complete 18 one-hour sessions, consisting of 20 min of passive stretching followed by 40 min of active task practice while wearing the device. To date two subjects have finished all training sessions. The device was well tolerated and improvements were observed. The study is ongoing.