OBJECTIVE To investigate the predictors related to upper extremity functional recovery, with special emphasis on neuromuscular electrical stimulation dose-response in patients after stroke. SUBJECTS Ninety-five patients with stroke who received a 4-week neuromuscular electrical stimulation intervention. DESIGN Prospective predictive analysis. METHODS The change score of the Action Researc...

This paper proposes the use of a controlled assistive device, aimed as a support for the impaired individuals to allow a limited ambulatory function. The aim of the overall project is to develop a simple, portable and economically accessible device that permits the limited movement of the inferior extremities on patients with lumbar spinal cord injuries. The scope of the present investigation i...

We present a kinematic model of a paraplegic subject walking with crutches where the subject with the crutches is modeled as a parallel kinematic structure. The model is employed to investigate if certain quadrupedal gait patterns can be implemented with functional electrical stimulation. The study is motivated by the fact that the existing crutch-assisted gait realized by the electrical stimul...

xii Chapter 1 – Introduction 1 Chapter 2 – Literature Review 4

4 Kurzfassung 5 Summary 6

Results are reported on two aspects of underwater vision, apparent distance and hand-eye coordination. The accuracy of distance estimates underwater varies greatly from underestimation at near distances, to overestimation at far distances. Viewing through turbid water rather than clear water greatly increases the tendency toward overestimation. The ability of subjects to perform motor responses...

Recent studies have shown that functional electrical stimulation (FES) therapy can improve the motor recovery and range of the motion of stroke patients. The state-of-the-art functional electrical stimulators are open-loop control systems, i.e., the controller is unaware of the patient’s posture and progress during the therapy. In this research, we have developed a closed-loop Newton/GMRES nonl...

Six subjects participated in a study to determine their ability to identify simple geometric patterns on a 49-point fingertip-scanned electrotactile display and on an array of Braille-like raised dots. While raised dot performance (97.2%) was better than electrotactile (78.5%), this study represents the first successful demonstration of electrical stimulation of tactile patterns on the fingertips.