A Wearable Bracelet Device for Promoting Arm Use in Stroke Patients

After stroke, many patients experience hemiparesis or weakness on one side of the body. In order to compensate for this lack of motor function, they tend to overuse their non-affected limb. This so called learned non-use may be one of the most relevant contributors to functional loss after post-stroke hospital discharge. We hypothesize that frequent exposure to movement related feedback through a wearable bracelet device may 1) increase the patient’s intrinsic motivation for using the paretic limb, and 2) counteract learned non-use, therefore inducing motor recovery. First, to validate the accelerometers-based measurement of arm use, we recruited 10 right-handed volunteers without neurological impairments. Second, we explored the acceptability and clinical impact of a low-cost wearable system on 4 chronic stroke patients with hemiparesis. Our results suggest that frequent exposure to direct feedback about arm use promotes the integration of the paretic limb in the performance of instrumental activities of daily living (iADLs). In addition, results from questionnaires revealed that the use of wearable devices may influence positively the patient’s intrinsic motivation for using the affected arm. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study suggesting the benefits of wearable-based feedback as an intervention tool for counteracting learned non-use.