Daily-life monitoring of stroke survivors motor performance: the INTERACTION sensing system.

The objective of the INTERACTION Eu project is to develop and validate an unobtrusive and modular system for monitoring daily life activities, physical interactions with the environment and for training upper and lower extremity motor function in stroke subjects. This paper describes the development and preliminary testing of the project sensing platform made of sensing shirt, trousers, gloves and shoes. Modular prototypes were designed and built considering the minimal set of inertial, force and textile sensors that may enable an efficient monitoring of stroke patients. The single sensing elements are described and the results of their preliminary lab-level testing are reported.

Effects of dynamic sitting interventions on tissue oxygenation in individuals with spinal cord disorders.

STUDY DESIGN: An explorative cross-sectional study. OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to investigate the possibility of imposing dynamic sitting behavior on individuals with spinal cord disorders by using the Dynasit chair and to investigate its effect on the (sub-)cutaneous tissue oxygenation. SETTING: Rehabilitation Centre het Roessingh, Enschede, the Netherlands. SUBJECTS: Ten male subjects with a spinal cord disorder. METHODS: The Dynasit chair, an experimental simulator chair, containing mechanical concepts for postural adjustments, regulation of tuberal load and pelvic rotation, was developed to allow individuals with a spinal cord disorder to sit in a dynamic way. An experiment was carried out in which a dynamic sitting pattern was imposed. The sitting pattern consisted of series of actuated changes in posture, tuberal load and pelvic orientation. Effects of these changes on (sub-)cutaneous buttock tissue oxygenation were investigated by transcutaneous measurement of tissue oxygenation. RESULTS: Nonparametric statistical analyses were carried out on nine subjects that completed the study. Results showed significant positive effects (P<0.05) of actuated changes in tuberal load on the cutaneous and subcutaneous tissue oxygenation. CONCLUSION: The Dynasit chair is effective in imposing dynamic sitting behavior in individuals with a spinal cord disorder and consequently might reduce the chance of tissue degradation.