Feasibility and Sensitivity of Wearable Sensors for Daily Activity Monitoring in Spinal Cord Injury Trials.
Melina Giagiozis, Irina Lerch, Anita D Linke and 13 others
PMID 40637209WHAT IT FOUND
Wearable sensors tracked daily activity in spinal cord injury patients, showing that energy expenditure increased weekly and correlated with independence scores.
While the sensor data suggested the treatment group moved more, the trial's primary clinical outcomes showed no significant difference between groups.
Key findings
01Average daily energy expenditure increased significantly over the first 30 weeks post-injury, with light and moderate physical activity rising while rest and sedentary time did not change.
02Estimated energy expenditure correlated strongly with the Spinal Cord Independence Measure and Upper Extremity Motor Score, indicating sensors can capture real-world functional independence.
03The treatment group showed a significantly greater increase in energy expenditure than the placebo group, but the trial's primary outcome (Upper Extremity Motor Score) and secondary outcome (SCIM) showed no significant difference.
STILL TO COME
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What it does not show
Sensor data was only collected from 69 of the 126 trial participants, and not all centers implemented the technology due to technical or regulatory issues. The study could not distinguish between active movement and passive movement or assisted therapy, which is common during inpatient rehabilitation. There was high variability in the number of measurements per participant, which may affect the reliability of individual trajectories. The discrepancy between positive sensor findings and null clinical outcomes suggests that energy expenditure may not directly translate to improved motor function or independence as measured by standard scales.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest. The study was funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation, EU Horizon2020, Wings for Life, the Swiss Paraplegic Foundation, and Wyss Zurich. The funding sources had no role in the study design, data collection, analysis, or manuscript preparation.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that the NG101 treatment improved clinical function based on the sensor data. The primary clinical outcome (UEMS) and the secondary outcome (SCIM) showed no significant difference between the treatment and placebo groups, meaning the increased energy expenditure did not equate to better motor or independence scores.
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