Transfer of mode switching performance: from training to upper-limb prosthesis use.

Participants were able-bodied, not actual prosthesis users, so the results may not generalize to people with amputations or congenital deficiencies. The training groups did not have equal amounts of switching practice; the game group performed fewer switching blocks because other parts of the game took longer. The software thresholds used for training were stricter than those in the actual prosthesis, which may have affected the magnitude of the transfer effect. The study used a simulator with a sweatband for electrodes, which does not replicate the weight and pressure of a real prosthesis socket. Sample size was small (28 participants total).

Funded by University Campus Fryslan and Revalidatiefonds Nederland. No commercial conflicts of interest were reported.

Do not conclude that serious games are superior to standard myosignal feedback for training prosthesis users. The study found no significant difference in transfer between the two training methods. Also, do not assume this training will make switching fast enough for daily life; the time to switch remained at least four seconds, which is still slow.