Smart Phone for Stroke Upper Limb Motor Function Training

Smart Phone as an Assistive Technology for Stroke Upper Limb Motor Function Training - Feasibility and Treatment Effects Analysis

Stroke rehabilitation for stroke patients can enhance the upper and lower limb function, daily of daily activity improvement, and be beneficial to the family members' quality of life. Literature studies have supported the use of tele-rehabilitation to be as effective as stroke home rehabilitation. Stroke tele-rehabilitation model can use smartphones and apps to practice the mobile health model. Nevertheless, effects of tele-rehabilitation analysis for the proximal recovery of the stroke upper limbs still need to be explored. The main purpose of this research is to develop a smart phone with app system for stroke upper limb motor training, and further analyze its feasibility and treatment effects. The investigators randomly assigned chronic home stroke cases to the experimental group (n=20) and control group (n=20), each group received 8 weeks of treatment.

Stroke rehabilitation (including occupational therapy and physical therapy) for stroke patients can enhance the upper and lower limb function, daily of daily activity improvement, and be beneficial to the family members' quality of life. Literature studies have supported the use of tele-rehabilitation to be as effective as stroke home rehabilitation. Stroke tele-rehabilitation model can use smartphones and apps to practice the mobile health model. This technology with remote rehabilitation have the important characteristics, including ease of use, high-intensity, repetitive exercises, and providing feedback information, to facilitate the recovery of training functions. Nevertheless, effects of tele-rehabilitation analysis for the proximal recovery of the stroke upper limbs still need to be explored. The main purpose of this research is to develop a smart phone with app system for stroke upper limb motor training, and further analyze its feasibility and treatment effects. The investigators randomly assigned chronic home stroke cases to the experimental group (n=20) and control group (n=20), each group received 8 weeks of treatment.

Inclusion Criteria:

• First onset
• Unilateral Hemiplegia
• No obvious cognitive impairment (Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score > 23)
• The FMA upper limb movement score is above 30 points
• Those who have used a smartphone for more than 3 months before the onset of the disease or at present
• Those who have no obvious vision loss and can read the text on mobile phones clearly
• Those who own a smart phone

Exclusion Criteria:

• Language barriers or aphasia
• Other orthopedic diseases (such as severe shoulder pain, joint contractures) or nerve damage (such as peripheral nerve damage) that affect the movement of the upper limbs
• Feel severe Absence, FMA sensory score <12 points
• Other progressive diseases such as cancer, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, multiple sclerosis, etc