A multi-joint soft exosuit improves shoulder and elbow motor functions in individuals with spinal cord injury

World Health Organization. Spinal cord injury (2024); https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/spinal-cord-injury
Nas, K., Yazmalar, L., Şah, V., Aydın, A. & Öneş, K. Rehabilitation of spinal cord injuries. World J. Orthop. 6, 8–16 (2015).
Google Scholar
Ho, J. S., Ko, K. S., law, S. W. & Man, G. C. The effectiveness of robotic-assisted upper limb rehabilitation to improve upper limb function in patients with cervical spinal cord injuries: a systematic literature review. Front. Neurol. 14, 1126755 (2023).
Google Scholar
Charlifue, S. & Gerhart, K. Community integration in spinal cord injury of long duration. NeuroRehabilitation 19, 91–101 (2004).
Savic, G., Frankel, H. L., Jamous, M. A., Soni, B. M. & Charlifue, S. Participation restriction and assistance needs in people with spinal cord injuries of more than 40 year duration. Spinal Cord Ser. Cases 4, 28 (2018).
Google Scholar
Morone, G., Pirrera, A., Iannone, A. & Giansanti, D. Development and use of assistive technologies in spinal cord injury: a narrative review of reviews on the evolution, opportunities, and bottlenecks of their integration in the health domain. Healthcare 11, 1646 (2023).
Google Scholar
Fawcett, J. W. et al. Guidelines for the conduct of clinical trials for spinal cord injury as developed by the ICCP panel: spontaneous recovery after spinal cord injury and statistical power needed for therapeutic clinical trials. Spinal Cord 45, 190–205 (2007).
Google Scholar
Mekki, M., Delgado, A. D., Fry, A., Putrino, D. & Huang, V. Robotic rehabilitation and spinal cord injury: a narrative review. Neurotherapeutics 15, 604–617 (2018).
Google Scholar
Pehlivan, A. U. et al. Design and validation of the RiceWrist-S exoskeleton for robotic rehabilitation after incomplete spinal cord injury. Robotica 32, 1415–1431 (2014).
Google Scholar
Sledziewski, L., Schaaf, R. C. & Mount, J. Use of robotics in spinal cord injury: a case report. Am. J. Occup. Ther. 66, 51–58 (2012).
Google Scholar
Vanmulken, D. M. M., Spooren, A. I. F., Bongers, H. M. H. & Seelen, H. M. Robot-assisted task-oriented upper extremity skill training in cervical spinal cord injury: a feasibility study. Spinal Cord 53, 547–551 (2015).
Google Scholar
Catalán, J. M. et al. Hybrid brain/neural interface and autonomous vision-guided whole-arm exoskeleton control to perform activities of daily living (ADLs). J. Neuroeng. Rehabil. 20, 61 (2023).
Google Scholar
Chang, E. Y., McPherson, A. I. W., Adolf, R. C., Gloumakov, Y. & Stuart, H. S. Modulating wrist-hand kinematics in motorized-assisted grasping with C5-6 spinal cord injury. IEEE Trans. Med. Robot. Bionics 6, 189–201 (2024).
Google Scholar
Francisco, G. E. et al. Robot-assisted training of arm and hand movement shows functional improvements for incomplete cervical spinal cord injury. Am. J. Phys. Med. Rehabil. 96, S171 (2017).
Google Scholar
Zariffa, J. et al. Feasibility and efficacy of upper limb robotic rehabilitation in a subacute cervical spinal cord injury population. Spinal Cord 50, 220–226 (2012).
Google Scholar
Soekadar, S. R. et al. Hybrid EEG/EOG-based brain/neural hand exoskeleton restores fully independent daily living activities after quadriplegia. Sci. Robot. 1, eaag3296 (2016).
Google Scholar
Cortes, M. et al. Improved motor performance in chronic spinal cord injury following upper-limb robotic training. NeuroRehabilitation 33, 57–65 (2013).
Kim, J. et al. Clinical efficacy of upper limb robotic therapy in people with tetraplegia: a pilot randomized controlled trial. Spinal Cord 57, 49–57 (2019).
Google Scholar
Sørensen, L. & Månum, G. A single-subject study of robotic upper limb training in the subacute phase for four persons with cervical spinal cord injury. Spinal Cord Ser. Cases 5, 29 (2019).
Google Scholar
Proietti, T., Ambrosini, E., Pedrocchi, A. & Micera, S. Wearable robotics for impaired upper-limb assistance and rehabilitation: state of the art and future perspectives. IEEE Access 10, 106117–106134 (2022).
Google Scholar
Gandolla, M., Antonietti, A., Longatelli, V. & Pedrocchi, A. The effectiveness of wearable upper limb assistive devices in degenerative neuromuscular diseases: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Front. Bioeng. Biotechnol. 7, 450 (2020).
Google Scholar
Xiloyannis, M. et al. Soft robotic suits: state of the art, core technologies, and open challenges. IEEE Trans. Robot. 38, 1343–1362 (2021).
Google Scholar
Cardoso, L. R. L., Bochkezanian, V., Forner-Cordero, A., Melendez-Calderon, A. & Bo, A. P. L. Soft robotics and functional electrical stimulation advances for restoring hand function in people with SCI: a narrative review, clinical guidelines and future directions. J. Neuroeng. Rehabil. 19, 66 (2022).
Google Scholar
Cappello, L. et al. Assisting hand function after spinal cord injury with a fabric-based soft robotic glove. J. Neuroeng. Rehabil. 15, 59 (2018).
Google Scholar
Correia, C. et al. Improving grasp function after spinal cord injury with a soft robotic glove. IEEE Trans. Neural Syst. Rehabil. Eng. 28, 1407–1415 (2020).
Google Scholar
Yoo, H.-J., Lee, S., Kim, J., Park, C. & Lee, B. Development of 3D-printed myoelectric hand orthosis for patients with spinal cord injury. J. Neuroeng. Rehabil. 16, 162 (2019).
Google Scholar
Dittli, J. et al. Mixed methods usability evaluation of an assistive wearable robotic hand orthosis for people with spinal cord injury. J. Neuroeng. Rehabil. 20, 162 (2023).
Google Scholar
Osuagwu, B. A. C. et al. Home-based rehabilitation using a soft robotic hand glove device leads to improvement in hand function in people with chronic spinal cord injury: a pilot study. J. Neuroeng. Rehabil. 17, 40 (2020).
Google Scholar
Lotti, N. et al. Soft robotics to enhance upper limb endurance in individuals with multiple sclerosis. Soft Robot. 11, 338–346 (2024).
Google Scholar
Proietti, T. et al. Restoring arm function with a soft robotic wearable for individuals with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Sci. Transl. Med. 15, eadd1504 (2023).
Google Scholar
Georgarakis, A.-M., Xiloyannis, M., Wolf, P. & Riener, R. A textile exomuscle that assists the shoulder during functional movements for everyday life. Nat. Mach. Intell. 4, 574–582 (2022).
Google Scholar
Nam, C. Y. et al. An exoneuromusculoskeleton for self-help upper limb rehabilitation after stroke. Soft Robot. 9, 14–35 (2020).
Google Scholar
Proietti, T. et al. Combining soft robotics and telerehabilitation for improving motor function after stroke. Wearable Technol. 5, e1 (2024).
Google Scholar
Park, S. J. et al. Soft exosuit based on fabric muscle for upper limb assistance. IEEE/ASME Trans. Mechatron. 28, 26–37 (2022).
Google Scholar
Shi, Y. et al. Human-in-the-loop modeling and control of an upper limb exosuit with tendon-sheath actuation. IEEE Robot. Autom. Lett. 9, 5919–5926 (2024).
Google Scholar
Noronha, B. et al. Soft, lightweight wearable robots to support the upper limb in activities of daily living: a feasibility study on chronic stroke patients. IEEE Trans. Neural Syst. Rehabil. Eng. 30, 1401–1411 (2022).
Google Scholar
Simpson, C. et al. Upper extremity exomuscle for shoulder abduction support. IEEE Trans. Med. Robot. Bionics 2, 474–484 (2020).
Google Scholar
Campioni, L. et al. Preliminary evaluation of a soft wearable robot for shoulder movement assistance. IEEE Trans. Med. Robot. Bionics 7, 315–324 (2025).
Google Scholar
Oliveira, D. S. et al. A direct spinal cord-computer interface enables the control of the paralysed hand in spinal cord injury. Brain 147, 3583–3595 (2024).
Google Scholar
Lo, C., Tran, Y., Anderson, K., Craig, A. & Middleton, J. Functional priorities in persons with spinal cord injury: using discrete choice experiments to determine preferences. J. Neurotrauma 33, 1958–1968 (2016).
Google Scholar
Proietti, T. et al. Sensing and control of a multi-joint soft wearable robot for upper-limb assistance and rehabilitation. IEEE Robot. Autom. Lett. 6, 2381–2388 (2021).
Google Scholar
Gerez, L., Micera, S., Nuckols, R. & Proietti, T. Assessment of wearable robotics performance in patients with neurological conditions. Curr. Opin. Neurol. 37, 645–654 (2024).
Google Scholar
Zhou, Y. M. et al. A portable inflatable soft wearable robot to assist the shoulder during industrial work. Sci. Robot. 9, eadi2377 (2024).
Google Scholar
Atkins, M. S. et al. Mobile arm supports: evidence-based benefits and criteria for use. J. Spinal Cord Med. 31, 388–393 (2008).
Google Scholar
Kloosterman, M. G. M., Snoek, G. J., Kouwenhoven, M., Nene, A. V. & Jannink, M. J. A. Influence of gravity compensation on kinematics and muscle activation patterns during reach and retrieval in subjects with cervical spinal cord injury: an explorative study. J. Rehabil. Res. Dev. 47, 617 (2010).
Google Scholar
Prange, G. B. et al. Increased range of motion and decreased muscle activity during maximal reach with gravity compensation in stroke patients. In Proc. 2007 IEEE 10th International Conference on Rehabilitation Robotics 467–471 (IEEE, 2007).
Krabben, T. et al. Influence of gravity compensation training on synergistic movement patterns of the upper extremity after stroke, a pilot study. J. Neuroeng. Rehabil. 9, 44 (2012).
Google Scholar
Feng, M., Yang, D., Ren, L., Wei, G. & Gu, G. X-crossing pneumatic artificial muscles. Sci. Adv. 9, eadi7133 (2023).
Google Scholar
Recommendations for sensor locations on individual muscles; http://seniam.org/sensor_location.htm
Bangor, A., Kortum, P. T. & Miller, J. T. An empirical evaluation of the system usability scale. Int. J. Hum. Comput. Interact. 24, 574–574 (2008).
Google Scholar
Don’t miss more hot News like this! AI/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Click here to discover the latest in AI news!
2025-09-22 00:00:00