Robotic rehabilitation sleeve with electrical stimulation ‘can offer benefits’

A new wearable training system that combines robotic components with functional electrical stimulation (FES) capabilities has shown benefits for multi-joint upper limb rehabilitation.

Developed by the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, the rehabilitation sleeve contains a novel bracing system with moisture and pressure management that can also translate the user's motions into mouse inputs, allowing them to interact with computers.

This offers access to a diverse range of rehabilitation training programmes, enhancing the patient interest in the process and yielding better results.

Its electric motors can help the elbow and wrist joints to move, while also enhancing neuroplasticity recovery by inducing additional muscular practice at the elbow, wrist, hand and fingers through electrical stimulation.

Pilot clinical trials have indicated that the new FES-robotic hybrid training system is able to achieve better recovery rates than either technology used on its own.

It is hoped that it can be used in hospitals, clinics, health centres and the home as a means of helping people with paralysis to improve their upper limb functions.