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Hand therapy research

Everything we have read on hand therapy. Each paper is summarised from the full article rather than its abstract, so the limitations are in there too, and the funding wherever the paper declares it.

1,303 PAPERS · PAGE 3 OF 27 · NEWEST FIRST

• OTOther2017Quantification of task-dependent cortical activation evoked by robotic continuous wrist joint manipulation in chronic hemiparetic stroke.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationAfter stroke, people with severe sensory impairment had reduced brain responses to robotic wrist movement. People with mild impairment showed reduced responses during active wrist tasks. The findings describe sensory pathway damage, not treatment benefit.
• PTOTPilot2017A Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation (NMES) and robot hybrid system for multi-joint coordinated upper limb rehabilitation after stroke.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationAfter 20 sessions with a muscle-signal-controlled robot and electrical stimulation device, 11 people after chronic stroke improved upper-limb function scores and tracking accuracy. No control group means the combined intervention cannot be attributed to one component.
• OTOther2017Supplemental vibrotactile feedback control of stabilization and reaching actions of the arm using limb state and position error encodings.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationIn healthy adults, vibration on the opposite arm reduced hand drift and improved reaching without vision. After training, feedback about target error helped reaching more than feedback about hand position and speed. This is not evidence for stroke therapy.
• OTOther2017Design and test of an automated version of the modified Jebsen test of hand function using Microsoft Kinect.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationIn 11 stroke patients, a Kinect camera timed the Modified Jebsen hand test and agreed with video review better than a therapist did. It may help repeat hand-function tests consistently, but does not show recovery.
• OTOther2017Resolving the effect of wrist position on myoelectric pattern recognition control.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationFor EMG control of hand grasps, adding wrist position data improved accuracy, especially with a model that handles non-linear patterns. Simulating other wrist positions from neutral-position data also improved accuracy, but only in offline tests.
• PTOTOther2017Dynamic arm study: quantitative description of upper extremity function and activity of boys and men with duchenne muscular dystrophy.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationBoys and men with Duchenne muscular dystrophy had weaker arm muscles and smaller active joint angles than healthy peers. Deltoid and biceps torque loss was associated with difficulty lifting and bending the elbow.
• PTOTOther2017The Impact of Shoulder Abduction Loading on Volitional Hand Opening and Grasping in Chronic Hemiparetic Stroke.Neurorehabilitation and neural repairLifting the affected arm against gravity worsened hand opening in moderate chronic stroke and made severely impaired participants close their hand instead of opening it. Controls were unaffected. Total maximal grasping force did not change, but involuntary grasping force rose with loading.
• PTOTQualitative2016How Therapists Use Visualizations of Upper Limb Movement Information From Stroke Patients: A Qualitative Study With Simulated Information.JMIR rehabilitation and assistive technologiesTherapists saw simulated arm-movement dashboards as useful for checking home activity, exercise, and neglect, engaging patients, and advocating for resources. They also said the data lacked context needed to tell whether movements were exercises, daily tasks, or compensations.
• OTOther2017Counting Grasping Action Using Force Myography: An Exploratory Study With Healthy Individuals.JMIR rehabilitation and assistive technologiesIn 10 healthy people, wrist and forearm force-sensing straps told whether the hand was grasping or not with high accuracy, and counted grasps during controlled pick-and-place tasks. It was not tested in stroke or weak-arm rehabilitation.
• PTOTCase-Control2017Abnormal EEG Responses to TMS During the Cortical Silent Period Are Associated With Hand Function in Chronic Stroke.Neurorehabilitation and neural repairIn chronic stroke, brain stimulation with brain-wave recording during active thumb contraction showed abnormal brain responses and a longer pause in muscle activity than controls. Hand-function links were tentative and not confirmed.
• PTOTMeta-Analysis2017Markerless motion capture systems as training device in neurological rehabilitation: a systematic review of their use, application, target population and efficacy.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationMost markerless motion capture rehab studies used Kinect in stroke, training upper or lower limbs. Patients improved on balance or arm tests, but few trials, low quality and varied protocols mean efficacy is not proven.
• PTOTOther2016Modifying Kinect placement to improve upper limb joint angle measurement accuracy.Journal of hand therapy : official journal of the American Society of Hand TherapistsPlacing a Kinect sensor at 45° elevation in front of the shoulder gave better upper limb reaching angle accuracy than the usual horizontal setup. Wrist range was still too inaccurate for clinical use.
• OTOther2016Differences in active range of motion measurements in the upper extremity of patients with writer's cramp compared with healthy controls.Journal of hand therapy : official journal of the American Society of Hand TherapistsOnly 5 of 38 upper-extremity motion measurements differed between 8 people with writer's cramp and 8 controls. Some finger movements were limited, others excessive, and index finger knuckle flexion decreased with longer disease and worse handwriting.
• OTOther2017Effect of task-oriented activities on hand functions, cognitive functions and self-expression of elderly patients with dementia.Journal of physical therapy sciencePeople with mild dementia in a hand-based activity program improved in grip, pinch, coordination, visual, spatial, visuomotor, and attention scores, and in self-expression; the control group did not show such improvement.
• PTOTOther2017The Arm Movement Detection (AMD) test: a fast robotic test of proprioceptive acuity in the arm.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationA robotic test that took about twelve minutes separated stroke survivors with impaired arm position sense from those without. It also detected age-related changes in movement detection threshold, but it did not test treatment benefit.
• PTOTCohort2017"Long-term stability of stimulating spiral nerve cuff electrodes on human peripheral nerves".Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationIn people with implanted spiral nerve cuff electrodes, most stimulation contacts still produced motor or sensory responses, and stimulation settings changed little over 5 to 11 years.
• OTOther2017Electromyographic Activity of the Upper Limb in Three Hand Function Tests.Hong Kong journal of occupational therapy : HKJOTThe box and blocks test used more shoulder and upper arm muscles than the pegboard tests, which behaved alike. The study measured healthy students, so it does not show what these differences mean for patients.
• OTOther2017Inhibition of Parkinsonian tremor with cutaneous afferent evoked by transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationIn 8 people with Parkinson's disease, electrical stimulation on the back of the hand reduced resting tremor during stimulation by 61.56% on average, but tremor returned after stimulation and some trials worsened. This is a small lab finding, not a proven treatment.
• OTOther2017Improved prosthetic hand control with concurrent use of myoelectric and inertial measurements.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationAdding inertial sensor data to muscle signals improved offline hand-movement decoding and real-time prosthetic hand control in mostly able-bodied users. The amputee result came from a single participant.
• PTOTCohort2017Prediction of prognosis of upper-extremity function following stroke-related paralysis using brain imaging.Journal of physical therapy scienceIn 12 stroke patients with partly intact motor tract fibers, a diffusion MRI tract ratio was related to upper-limb motor and use scores at 3 months. Two cases did not follow this pattern, and all received physical, occupational, and speech therapy.
• OTRCT2017Robotic Assistance for Training Finger Movement Using a Hebbian Model: A Randomized Controlled Trial.Neurorehabilitation and neural repairHigh robotic assistance did not improve the primary hand function outcome more than low assistance, but both groups improved. Higher assistance was more motivating and was linked to more benefit for more severely impaired patients with intact proprioception.
• OTOther2017Evaluating Hand Function in Clients with Trigger Finger.Occupational therapy internationalIn people with trigger finger, the Purdue Pegboard Test tracked severity, while the Functional Dexterity Test and grip strength did not. All tests distinguished trigger finger from controls, and affected-hand scores related moderately to self-reported disability except the affected-hand Purdue Pegboard subtest.
• PTOTOther2018Development of a parent-reported questionnaire evaluating upper limb activity limitation in children with cerebral palsy.Physiotherapy research international : the journal for researchers and clinicians in physical therapyA parent-completed 19-item questionnaire for children with cerebral palsy covered upper limb activity from severe to mild limits. It can be completed at home, but change after therapy has not yet been tested.
• PTOTCohort2017Change in hand dexterity and habitual gait speed reflects cognitive decline over time in healthy older adults: a longitudinal study.Journal of physical therapy scienceChanges in 5-m habitual walking time and peg-moving task time were significantly associated with changes in cognitive test scores over three years in healthy older adults. This observational finding cannot show that either change causes the other.
• PTOTSLPRCT2017Cardiovascular responses during resistance exercise after an aerobic session.Brazilian journal of physical therapyDoing aerobic exercise before resistance training did not lower blood pressure spikes. It actually increased diastolic and mean blood pressure during the first two sets and kept heart rate higher. Therapists should not prescribe aerobic warm-ups to reduce cardiovascular stress during resistance exercise.
• PTOTCohort2017A modified seated side tapping test in which the arms are crossed also reflects gait function in community-dwelling elderly.Journal of physical therapy scienceA seated test where elderly people cross their arms and tap shoulder pads correlates with walking speed and Timed Up and Go scores. This suggests trunk control, not arm strength, drives the link between seated tapping tasks and gait function.
• PTOTOther2017The effects of vibratory stimulation employed to forearm and arm flexor muscles on upper limb function in patients with chronic stroke.Journal of physical therapy scienceVibration to the affected biceps and wrist flexor was followed by higher grip strength and Box and Block Test scores, while sensory scores changed little in 10 people with hemiplegia after stroke, without a control group.
• PTOTOther2018Reliability of upper limb and trunk joint angles in healthy adults during activities of daily living.Gait & postureDaily-task motion capture was more consistent for shoulder and elbow angles than for wrist or trunk angles in 19 healthy right-handed adults. Repeated movements within one session varied less than measurements across two sessions. Choose tasks by the joint you need to measure.
• PTOTOther2017The relationship between physical capacity and fear avoidance beliefs in patients with chronic low back pain.Journal of physical therapy scienceIn men with chronic low back pain, higher leg strength and cardiopulmonary endurance linked to lower fear of physical activity. Abdominal endurance linked to lower fear about work. However, this cross-sectional study cannot prove that fitness changes fear.
• PTOTPilot2017The effects of task-oriented training on hand dexterity and strength in children with spastic hemiplegic cerebral palsy: a preliminary study.Journal of physical therapy scienceThe six children who received conventional occupational therapy plus 20 minutes of task-oriented training showed a within-group hand dexterity improvement, but no between-group difference was found and grip strength did not improve.
• OTSurvey2017Lending a Helping Hand at Work: A Multilevel Investigation of Prosocial Motivation, Inclusive Climate and Inclusive Behavior.Journal of occupational rehabilitationWhen a work team has a strong inclusive climate, colleagues help people with disabilities more. In teams with a weak climate, only those personally motivated to help others stepped up. Building a shared norm of inclusion matters more than trying to change individual attitudes.
• PTOTSLPOther2017Easy assessment tool for motor imagery ability in elementary scool students.Journal of physical therapy scienceA paper-based hand rotation task tracked motor imagery ability in children without computers. Older students judged faster, and errors rose with rotation angle. However, reliability was not tested, so use it as a quick screen rather than a definitive measure.
• PTOTCase Report2017Dual task training effects on balance and hand functions of stroke patients.Journal of physical therapy scienceTwo stroke patients with right hemiplegia improved on hand dexterity and balance tests after three weeks of dual-task training. Because only two people were treated and no comparison group was used, this shows what happened to them, not that the training caused the improvement.
• PTOTNarrative Review2018Passive prosthetic hands and tools: A literature review.Prosthetics and orthotics internationalPassive prostheses are used by about one in three potential users, mostly for appearance and comfort, not just as a step toward active devices. They offer limited but sufficient function for many daily tasks. Research should focus on adjustable hands and tools for work and sports.
• OTOther2017Effect of fingernail length on the hand dexterity.Journal of physical therapy scienceIn 38 healthy right-handed students, object manipulation was faster with 2 mm fingernails than 0 mm on several timed tasks, including pin and small cube. Nail length may confound dexterity scores.
• PTOTPilot2018Functional Capacity Evaluation in Upper Limb Reduction Deficiency and Amputation: Development and Pilot Testing.Journal of occupational rehabilitationAdapted functional capacity tests for one-handed adults proved feasible but revealed lower lifting weights than two-handed controls. The prosthesis often limited performance due to grip safety rather than muscle strength, and no link was found between test scores and current pain.
• PTOTOther2018Sympathetic nervous system activity measured by skin conductance quantifies the challenge of walking adaptability tasks after stroke.Gait & postureSkin conductance rose as walking tasks became harder, linking physiological stress to task difficulty. Slower walkers showed higher stress responses, but self-reported balance confidence did not predict these changes.
• OTQualitative2018The influence of environment: Experiences of users of myoelectric arm prosthesis-a qualitative study.Prosthetics and orthotics internationalDaily users felt the myoelectric arm was part of their body and used it despite limitations. Non-daily users said it never became part of them and found function and appearance harder barriers. Support, training, and confidence were described as relevant.
• PTOTOther2017Validity of Robot-Based Assessments of Upper Extremity Function.Archives of physical medicine and rehabilitationRobot-based tests of arm movement correlated strongly with standard clinical measures of stroke impairment and function. A panel of tests, including speed and targeting tasks, captured deficits across different levels of daily life better than any single test alone.
• PTOTOther2018The effects of a client-centered leisure activity program on satisfaction, self-esteem, and depression in elderly residents of a long-term care facility.Journal of physical therapy scienceResidents who received usual activities plus chosen individual leisure activities and elastic-band group exercise showed better performance and satisfaction, higher self-esteem, lower depression, and better upper-limb function. In the control group, upper-limb, self-esteem, and depression outcomes did not change significantly.
• PTOTOther2018Age-dependent changes in dynamic standing-balance ability evaluated quantitatively using a stabilometer.Journal of physical therapy scienceDynamic standing balance declines with age, dropping sharply after 60. A new stabilometer index tracks this decline without hitting a ceiling, offering age-specific reference values for assessing balance in healthy adults.
• OTRCT2018The effects of modified constraint-induced movement therapy and mirror therapy on upper extremity function and its influence on activities of daily living.Journal of physical therapy scienceAfter three weeks, acute stroke inpatients given mirror therapy or mCIMT plus ADL training and self-exercise showed no significant between-group difference in arm function or ADL independence. In the mCIMT group, arm gains went with eating and dressing gains.
• PTOTPilot2018Pre-therapy Neural State of Bilateral Motor and Premotor Cortices Predicts Therapy Gain After Subcortical Stroke: A Pilot Study.American journal of physical medicine & rehabilitationIn ten chronic stroke patients, brain chemical measures before therapy were linked to arm movement gains after four weeks of reach practice. Higher markers of brain activity in some areas matched better improvement.
• OTCohort2018The Association of Cognitive Reserve in Chronic-Phase Functional and Neuropsychological Outcomes Following Traumatic Brain Injury.The Journal of head trauma rehabilitationAt least a year after TBI, higher estimated premorbid IQ and more education were related to better neuropsychological test scores, but not to daily function, physical health, or mental health.
• OTOther2018Rasch analysis of the patient-rated wrist evaluation questionnaire.Archives of physiotherapyPRWE scores after wrist fracture mostly worked as separate pain and activity subscales, but several items needed rescoring or splitting by age and work status before the questionnaire behaved consistently.
• PTOTPilot2018Detection of early symptoms of cumulativetrauma disorders among mothers of handicapped children: a pilot study.Journal of physical therapy scienceMothers of children with cerebral palsy who needed help with transfer and daily care had lower hand grip strength and lower wrist extensor muscle activity than mothers of healthy children. This pilot does not show that caregiving caused the difference.
• PTOTRCT2017Effect of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation on Severely Affected Arm-Hand Motor Function in Patients After an Acute Ischemic Stroke: A Pilot Randomized Control Trial.American journal of physical medicine & rehabilitationCathodal tDCS plus occupational therapy did not improve arm-hand function more than sham plus occupational therapy after severe acute stroke. The tDCS group gained 10 points on the 57-point arm-hand test versus 2 with sham, but 16 patients were too few.
• PTOTSystematic Review2017Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) for improving capacity in activities and arm function after stroke: a network meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationCathodal tDCS improved activities of daily living in stroke patients, but no tDCS type improved arm function. Safety profiles were similar across all stimulation types and controls. Clinicians should not expect tDCS to restore arm movement based on this evidence.
• PTOTCohort2018Association between knee extensor strength and pulmonary function in the female elderly.Journal of physical therapy scienceKnee extensor strength correlates with lung capacity in older women, explaining about a third of the variance in vital capacity. Stronger legs are associated with better breathing, but the cross-sectional design cannot prove that leg exercises improve lung function.
• PTOTSurvey2018What are patients with Rett syndrome interested in?Journal of physical therapy scienceMost individuals with Rett syndrome were reported to show interests, especially people, music, things to see, animations, and books. Staff observations can guide choosing motivating activities, but the report does not prove those interests improve outcomes.