Tracking motor recovery in stroke survivors undergoing rehabilitation using wearable technology.

Quantitative assessment of motor abilities in stroke survivors undergoing rehabilitation can be a valuable feedback to guide the rehabilitation process. The Functional Ability Scale (FAS) part of Wolf Motor Function Test (WMFT) is used to evaluate movement quality during performance of a set of functional motor tasks. In this paper, we show that information collected using body worn sensors such as accelerometers during performance of functional motor tasks by stroke survivors can be used to build accurate classifiers of FAS scores for individual tasks. We perform feature selection to improve classification accuracy and show that it is possible to estimate the total FAS score from a subset of functional motor tasks taken from the WMFT.

Monitoring mobility assistive device use in post-stroke patients.

Mobility assistive devices (MAD) such as canes can improve mobility and allow independence in the performance of mobility-related tasks. The use of MAD is often prescribed for stroke survivors. Despite their acknowledged qualities, MAD in real life conditions are typically underutilized, misused and abandoned. Ecologically sound, evidence based outcome measures need to be developed so as to capture the inherent complexities behind real life use of MAD and identify markers and mitigators of a successful integration of MAD into the daily activities of stroke survivors. In this study, we used accelerometers, gyroscopes, and a load cell to identify the task a patient was performing and examine the use of the cane in the context of the task.

Identification of tasks performed by stroke patients using a mobility assistive device.

Many stroke patients are prescribed canes or other mobility assistive devices. Once taken home, these mobility assistive devices are often abandoned or misused. A means for assessing the use of the cane in the home and community settings is required to assist clinicians in the prescription of these devices. In this study, we propose the use of wearable sensors to identify tasks performed by stroke patients with a mobility assistive device. Subjects performed ten tasks with a three-axis accelerometer attached to their ankle and a neural network was trained to identify the task being performed. Results from 15 stroke patients indicated that these motor tasks can be reliably identified with a median sensitivity of 90 % at a median specificity of 95%. These results indicate that it is possible to use a single module with a three-axis accelerometer attached to the ankle to reliably identify motor tasks associated with the use of a cane. Therefore, we envision that the methodology presented in this paper could be used to evaluate the use of a cane in the context of the task being performed.