Article

The evaluation of hand function impairment following a neurological disorder (stroke and cervical spinal cord injury) requires sensitive, reliable and clinically meaningful assessment tools. Clinical performance measures of hand
function mainly focus on the accomplishment of activities of daily living (ADL), typically rather complex tasks assessed by a gross ordinal rating; while the motor performance (i.e. kinematics) is less detailed. The goal of this study was to develop a low-cost instrumented glove to capture details in grasping, feasible
for the assessment of hand function in clinical practice and rehabilitation settings. METHODS: Different sensor types were tested for output signal stability
over time by measuring the signal drift of their step responses. A system that
converted sensor output voltages into angles based on pre-measured curves was
implemented. Furthermore, the voltage supply of each sensor signal conditioning
circuit was increased to enhance the sensor resolution. The repeatability of
finger bending trajectories, recorded during the performance of three ADL-based
tasks, was established using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC).
Moreover, the accuracy of the glove was evaluated by determining the agreement
between angles measured with the embedded sensors and angles measured by
traditional goniometry. In addition, the feasibility of the glove was tested in
four patients with a pathological hand function caused by a cervical spinal cord
injury (cSCI). RESULTS: A sensor type that displayed a stable output signal over
time was identified, and a high sensor resolution of 0.5 degrees was obtained.
The evaluation of the glove's reliability yielded high ICC values (0.84 to 0.92)
with an accuracy error of about +/- 5 degrees . Feasibility testing revealed that
the glove was sensitive to distinguish different levels of hand function
impairment in cSCI patients. CONCLUSIONS: The device satisfied the desired system
requirements in terms of low cost, stable sensor signal over time, full
finger-flexion range of motion tracking and capability to monitor all three
joints of one finger. The developed rapid calibration system for easy use (high
feasibility) and excellent psychometric properties (i.e. reliability and
validity) qualify the device for the assessment of hand function in clinical
practice and rehabilitation settings.

Langue : ANGLAIS