Abstract
BackgroundThe benefits to be obtained from home-based physical therapy programmes are dependent on the proper execution of physiotherapy exercises during unsupervised treatment. Wearable sensors and appropriate movement-related metrics may be used to determine at-home exercise performance and compliance to a physical therapy program.MethodsA total of thirty healthy volunteers (mean age of 31 years) had their movements captured using wearable inertial measurement units (IMUs), after video recordings of five different exercises with varying levels of complexity were demonstrated to them. Participants were then given wearable sensors to enable a second unsupervised data capture at home. Movement performance between the participants’ recordings was assessed with metrics of movement smoothness, intensity, consistency and control.ResultsIn general, subjects executed all exercises similarly when recording at home and as compared with their performance in the lab. However, participants executed all movements faster compared to the physiotherapist’s demonstrations, indicating the need of a wearable system with user feedback that will set the pace of movement.ConclusionIn light of the Covid-19 pandemic and the imperative transition towards remote consultation and tele-rehabilitation, this work aims to promote new tools and methods for the assessment of adherence to home-based physical therapy programmes. The studied IMU-derived features have shown adequate sensitivity to evaluate home-based programmes in an unsupervised manner. Cost-effective wearables, such as the one presented in this study, can support therapeutic exercises that ought to be performed with appropriate speed, intensity, smoothness and range of motion.
Highlights
Recovery from surgical operations, trauma or musculoskeletal disorders is heavily reliant on patient involvement in a physical therapy programme which is often extended to home-based settings
With regards to the features and algorithms that accompany such systems, authors have previously relied on metrics measuring the duration of each exercise session, the number of the correctly performed repetitions of an exercise [14, 17], and the exercise performance quality
Even though our results indicate that a single-sensor solution may suffice for the monitoring of physiotherapy programmes, a second sensor on the thigh could be used for the calculation of the knee’s range of motion (RoM) and help better assess how well people carry out lower-limb exercises when at-home
Summary
Recovery from surgical operations, trauma or musculoskeletal disorders is heavily reliant on patient involvement in a physical therapy programme which is often extended to home-based settings. Patients tend to over-report the number of times they carried out exercises when athome [5, 13], which underlines the need of an unbiased and objective method for the monitoring and assessment of effectiveness of home rehabilitation programmes. In contrast to the conventional assessment of patient performance by the appointed physiotherapist, wearable technologies and easy-to-understand metrics can enable the automated, unsupervised and objective evaluation of home-based exercise programmes, along with the patients’ compliance with the prescribed treatment plan. The benefits to be obtained from home-based physical therapy programmes are dependent on the proper execution of physiotherapy exercises during unsupervised treatment. Wearable sensors and appropriate movement-related metrics may be used to determine at-home exercise performance and compliance to a physical therapy program
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