State of the Science for Pediatric Rehabilitation Engineering

Abstract

Over the past 25 years the field of rehabilitation engineering has recognized the need for a specific focus on the technological needs of children with disabilities as those needs often differ from those of adults [2]. Among the important efforts in a number of nations has been the support of a Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center (RERC) on technology for children with orthopedic disabilities by the United States Department of Education. The National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) earliest RERC on pediatrics influenced national rehabilitation policy and had a significant impact on the ‘Tech Act’ legislation of the early 1990s [13]. The NIDRR shifted the focus of this RERC in 1990 from leading the creation of technology service infrastructure to conducting research and development in the area of prosthetics and orthotics for children with orthopedic disabilities. The legacy of the Rancho Los Amigos RERC over its three funding cycles from 1990 to 2005, is now seen in a large number of commercially available products that meet the needs of children. Later, the NIDRR again shifted the focus of its pediatric RERC to newly emerging issues, and awarded this RERC on Technology for Children with Disabilities to our partnership between New Jersey Institute of Technology and the Childrens’ Specialized Hospital. We introduced the blending of emerging biomechanics, neuroscience and cognitive science with new therapeu-