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The Rutgers Arm, a Rehabilitation System in Virtual Reality: A Pilot Study

2006; Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.; Volume: 9; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1089/cpb.2006.9.148

1557-8364

Manjuladevi Kuttuva, Rareș Boian, Alma S. Merians, Grigore Burdea, Mourad Bouzit, Jeffrey A. Lewis, Devin Fensterheim,

Musculoskeletal pain and rehabilitation

Stroke is one of the leading causes of death and disability worldwide. Its prevalence calls for innovative rehabilitation methods. The Rutgers Arm is a novel upper extremity rehabilitation system consisting of a low-friction table, three-dimensional (3D) tracker, custom forearm support, PC workstation, library of Java 3D virtual reality (VR) exercises, clinical database module, and a tele-rehabilitation extension. The system was tested on a chronic stroke subject, under local and tele-rehabilitation conditions, over 5 weeks of training. Results show improvements in arm motor control and shoulder range of motion, corresponding to improved Fugl-Meyer test scores. Exercise duration, level of difficulty, and patient motivation were maintained under tele-rehabilitaion. A 1-week retention trial showed that gains were maintained.