Applications of wearable sensors in upper extremity MSK conditions: a scoping review.
Sohrob Milani Zadeh, Joy MacDermid, James Johnson and 2 others
PMID 37980497WHAT IT FOUND
Most upper limb musculoskeletal wearable sensor studies measured joint motion, not whether treatments helped.
Clinical studies were mostly observational, with no randomized trials, so they do not show whether sensors improve care.
Key findings
01The review included 80 studies, and only 20% of all studies considered treatment applications.
02Inertial measurement units were used in 68 studies, and surface electromyography in 13 studies.
03No randomized clinical trials were found among the 31 clinical population studies.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
This was a scoping review, and it did not critically appraise the included studies or review their statistical results. The clinical population category had no randomized clinical trials, so it does not show whether a treatment works. A large share of reviewed papers were observational studies, and many included studies were conference abstracts. Only 20% of all studies considered treatment applications, so the review is mainly about measurement. Comfortability was assessed in only five studies, so long-term wearability is not well described. Some studies called their systems wearable without embedding sensors in fabric, so wearability was uncertain. The review may have missed relevant studies because it used a specific search strategy and excluded some outcome details.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that wearable sensors improve upper limb musculoskeletal care. This review mapped measurement studies, not treatment trials, and it found no randomized clinical trials among the 31 clinical population studies.