Evaluation of Upper Limb Muscle Function Based on Muscle Activation Sequence

The assessment of muscle function is an important part of the rehabilitation of stroke patients. The study proposed two indexes, muscle activation sequence (MAS) and muscle activation duration (MAD), to evaluate the muscle function and the damage level of patients. EMG signals were collected from 6 upper limb muscles of 10 stroke and 10 healthy subjects. Then, the EMG signals were processed by the TKE operator. The MAS and MAD were obtained from each muscle of each subject. Results of the MAS and MAD between healthy and stroke subjects showed that MAS and MAD are more sensitive in evaluating the muscle function compared to other features. The study would promote the evaluation process of muscle function and assist in motor rehabilitation.