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. 2020 Sep 9;17(18):6557.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph17186557.

The Impact of Robotic Rehabilitation on the Motor System in Neurological Diseases. A Multimodal Neurophysiological Approach

Zoltán Zsigmond Major  1   2 , Calin Vaida  3 , Kinga Andrea Major  4 , Paul Tucan  3 , Gábor Simori  2 , Alexandru Banica  3 , Emanuela Brusturean  2 , Alin Burz  3 , Raul Craciunas  2 , Ionut Ulinici  3 , Giuseppe Carbone  3   5 , Bogdan Gherman  3 , Iosif Birlescu  3 , Doina Pisla  3
Affiliations

The Impact of Robotic Rehabilitation on the Motor System in Neurological Diseases. A Multimodal Neurophysiological Approach

Zoltán Zsigmond Major et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

Motor disability is a key feature of many neurological diseases, influencing the social roles of affected patients and their ability to perform daily life activities. Current rehabilitation capacities are overwhelmed by the age-related increase of motor dysfunctions seen, for example, in stroke, extrapyramidal or neuromuscular diseases. As the patient to rehabilitation personnel ration increases, robotic solutions might establish the possibility to rapidly satisfy the increasing demand for rehabilitation. This paper presents an inaugural exploratory study which investigates the interchangeability of a novel experimental robotic rehabilitation device system with classical physical therapy, using a multimodal neurophysiological assessment of the motor system-quantitative electroencephalogram (EEG), motor conduction times and turn/amplitude analysis. Preliminary results show no significant difference between the two methods; however, a significant effect of the therapy was found on different pathologies (beneficial for vascular and extrapyramidal, or limited, and only on preventing reduction of joint movements in neuromuscular).

Keywords: ALS; Parkinson’s; motor conduction time; physical therapy; qEEG; robotic rehabilitation; stroke; turn-amplitude analysis.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The modular robotic systems for upper limb rehabilitation: (a) ASPIRE; (b) ParReEx.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Images with patients during rehabilitation exercises with: (a) ParReEx wrist; (b) ParReEx elbow; (c) ASPIRE.
Figure 3
Figure 3
The evolution of frequency power representation over the motor zone and the changes in amplitude and frequency for the highest represented peak after 7 days of training.
Figure 4
Figure 4
The total, peripheral and central motor conduction time before and after the 7 day rehabilitation process.
Figure 5
Figure 5
The parameters of the interference pattern analysis show a non-significant, only visual tendency towards increase as an effect of the therapy.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Relative power findings show an increase of slow activity in parallel with a decrease in fast activity in the Extrapyramidal group. The highest peak presented an increase in both amplitude and frequencies after the 7 day rehabilitation program.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Interference pattern analysis parameters are notably not influenced by the rehabilitation.
Figure 8
Figure 8
The representation of slower qEEG frequencies are diminished, and high frequency activity seems to increase after the 7 day continuous exercises. The highest peak shows an increase in amplitude and frequency, a more robust representation of higher frequency range after exercise.
Figure 9
Figure 9
The parameters of the interference pattern analysis show a tendency for decrease after the rehabilitation.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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