Robotic Table and Serious Games for Integrative Rehabilitation in the Early Poststroke Phase: Two Case Reports.
Grigore Burdea, Nam Kim, Kevin Polistico and 4 others
PMID 35416787WHAT IT FOUND
Two people early after stroke added robotic table game training to usual physical, occupational, and speech therapy.
Both showed gains in arm function, but the table's contribution cannot be separated from usual therapy or natural recovery.
Key findings
01Both participants had Fugl-Meyer upper-extremity score increases of 11 and 10 points, at or above the reported minimal clinically important difference of 9 to 10 points.
02One case's total arm repetitions per session increased from 75 to 504, and the other's from 122 to 957.
03The robotic table training was added to physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech therapy, so the contribution of the table alone cannot be separated.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
The study had only two participants, so it cannot show what would happen in a larger group. Both participants also received physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech therapy during the same period, so the robotic table's effect cannot be separated from usual therapy or natural recovery. There was no control group or random assignment; the design compared each person before and after training. This was the first clinical feasibility trial of the system, and technical problems were encountered. The participants had mild upper-extremity impairment at entry, with Fugl-Meyer scores of 45 and 52 out of 66, so the results may not apply to more severely affected patients. Exit interviews were not done, and the participants' forms did not allow free comments, so reasons for ratings are incomplete.
Declared interests
One author is the majority owner of Bright Cloud International, which developed the medical device.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that the robotic table caused the arm function gains. Both people were in early recovery and also received physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech therapy, so the table's contribution cannot be separated from usual care or natural recovery.