Robotic Rehabilitation

Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation VS. Kinesio Taping Phillip Jean-Juste and Hakeem Johnson Kinesiology OTA 103 Lainisha McMiller-Turner July 9, 2015 Occupational Therapy is a growing field; one that is constantly changing as technology becomes more advanced. There are different techniques and methods used in this field, as well as the field of physical therapy, in order assist in client advancement and growth. The traditional method being discussed is Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation also known as PNF and the contemporary technique is Kinesio Taping. These techniques and methods came about for the same purpose, and that is to ultimately help both the Practitioners and of course clients they work with.

An important aspect of the rehabilitation process is gait training following amputation. Majority of amputees can regain the ability to walk functional distances after surgery, but gait deviations are extremely common. Gait impairments contribute to increasing energy requirements for walking as well as the development of debilitating musculoskeletal diseases. Transfemoral amputees often demonstrate deviations in frontal-plane kinematics of the pelvis and trunk; they have a contralateral rise of the pelvis during midstance on the prosthetic limb instead of maintaining a neutral position. Normalizing this frontal-plane deviation following an amputation is important in restoring a stable gait pattern, but doing so with available treatment

Exoskeletons and orthoses are defined as mechanical devices “worn” by an operator and fitted closely to the body to work in concert with the operator’s movements. The term “exoskeleton” is used to describe a device that augments the wearers performance, while the term “orthosis” is used to describe a device used to assist a person with limb pathology. Lower extremity exoskeletons seek to circumvent the limitations of autonomous legged robots by adding a human operator to the system. The system is designed in parallel with human limbs to augment human strength and endurance during locomotion. The basic system design consists of two powered anthropomorphic legs, a power unit, associated actuators, sensors, and a control unit.

A torn ACL will not be able to heal on its on however, there are non-surgical options to help ease the injury. A concise and careful rehabilitation program will help aid the physical recovery of an ACL tear, easing the pain and growing the supporting muscles. Non-surgical treatment is only ever seen in elderly patients, with little to no activity levels. An MRI scan is often implicated to try and discover additional injuries that often occur with a torn ACL, which may change the way in which the surgery is conducted (Sutter Health, 2016). Surgical treatments often see the use of a graft, usually taken from the patient’s leg, particularly from either the hamstring or patella tendon (Wallace, B 2017). The graft acts as scaffolding for the new

One of the fundamental parts of any physical therapy rehabilitation is the home exercise program. This rehabilitation program involves a set of exercises, stretches, activities, or instructions for the patient to perform outside of the clinic or at their respective homes. To gain a positive result, adherence to the home exercise program (HEP) is very important and crucial to meet the frequency needed for an optimal outcome. However, one of the major problems that PT students encounter is that they cannot make time to visit and attend their therapy sessions; this was further explained by Perry, M et al.[11] that participants were hesitant on prioritizing PT appointments over other commitments such as school works, family and personal matters,

The next phase involve of 3rd to 5th weeks. This postoperative rehabilitation program includes of flexion exercises in the supine and sitting position (can using CPM to reach 60_ 90 degree flexion) , patellar mobilization plus the ventral form. In this phase can do some new exercises in concentric isometric and co_ contraction . in( 3/5_ 10/12 )weeks, For this phase, the patient has a permission to do some exercises for recovery of the proprioception ( in the close kinematic chain mainly but we can use open kinematic chain as well), balance and gait exercises that are executable by various unstable platforms with enhancement of stimulating

A computer is positioned on the back of the suit (thus the back of the patient) and receives data from 15 sensors to control leg movements (). For individuals with spinal cord injuries, the signals from the brain are not able to reach the legs due to an obstruction or disconnect preventing successful nerve communication. The Ekso’s very own “smart crutches” provide an alternate route of brain to leg synchronization. As the patient moves his or her arms, the smart crutches trigger a signal in the bionic knees and hips initiating a step. All of this is done with the assistance of the physical therapist. Their job is to evaluate each individual's status, ability, progress, and comfort with the Ekso. The Ekso has two distinctive settings. The first setting is fixed assist, which is optimal for patients who may be completely paralyzed or severely weakened. In this setting, “each leg of the suit can contribute a fixed amount of power to help patients complete steps in a specified amount of time ()”. The other setting is designed to help patients with spinal injuries that still allow for some nerve signaling to be transferred from the brain to the lower body. This setting is called adaptive assist and is utilized when a patient is ready to start retraining and strengthening his or her lower extremities. “Clinicians can augment their patients’ strength and adjust to produce a smooth and consistent gait ().” Essentially, the Ekso is an electronic version of a human nervous system. The computer is the”brain” of the operation that transmits electrical signals much like the biological signals transmitted in

Furthermore, rehabilitation is one of the most promising therapeutic factors to regain motor neurons function and to restore the movement function. Types of injury are caused by a lower level or a higher level of injury. In case the lower-level is injured, functions of the pelvic organs, legs and trunk

As a consequence of the accumulation of stresses being placed on the joints in the upper extremity of wheelchair athletes during tasks of competition, training and day to day life, the upper limbs and in particular the shoulder appear commonly injured.(Churton & Keogh, 2013). Churton and Keogh (2013) determined through the use of electromyography (EMG) that in the majority of activities undertaken by wheelchair users, the shoulder girdle is the primary source of power. The shoulder is not structured suitably for repetitive loading, rather it is

This system is also used by the physical therapists. After surgery many patients need physical therapy to gain full range of motion back in the part of body they had surgery on. Not only do they need to get range of motion back

Introduction An individual’s capacity to move is critical to carry out basic activities of daily living (ADL). Motion illnesses considerably minimize a patient’s quality of living. This can be caused by two ways- a) injuries in upper or lower extremities and b) problems in Central Nervous System (CNS-brain or spinal cord).

The abilities of a successfully functioning exoskeleton machine seem to have no boundaries. For example, Juliano Pinto, a professional soccer player from Brazil was fitted for an exoskeleton that could be controlled by his brain. In the Men’s World Cup game, Pinto instructed his legs to kick a soccer ball, and believe it or not it worked (Eveleth, 2015). Another individual that has found success in the exoskeleton is Robert Woo. Woo was paralyzed from the waist down. when fourteen-thousand pounds of steel tubes fell off a crane, up twenty-five stories high, and onto his body. The ReWalk exoskeleton was able to get him walking again and he noted that this device changed his life (Eveleth, 2015). Today, the exoskeleton continues to prosper as fantasy ideas sketched out on paper actually become a reality. The XOS exoskeleton invented by Steve Jacobsen is the most recent and advanced exoskeleton in existence at this time (Wilson, 2013). This exoskeleton was specifically designed for military use. It would allow for increased strength and endurance and protection against bullets and other weapons which would mean less injuries that need immediate medical assistance (Wilson, 2013). Although this innovation seems limitless, the power and battery life pose some serious challenges. Along with difficulties relating to power, other problems are related to height and weight

The goals of a device assistive to the rehabilitation process are to improve independent mobility, reduce disability, delay functional decline, decrease the burden of care and provide assessment tools for the medical community. Patients using assistive devices have reported improved confidence and feeling of safety resulting in increased activity levels

Currently the design consists of different components from multiplying sources. The fingers are connected with rubber rings, ropes. Gripper motors are attached to the finger to decrease the friction. But these connections may become loose or unstable after the frequent hand movement. The rope is left outside of the glove

The prosthetic rehabilitation of the ED patient requires clinical knowledge of growth and development, behavior management, pedodontics, prosthodontics, orthodontics and oral surgery .Since ED patients usually present themselves at a very young age with a multitude anomalies, a multidisciplinary team approach is required.