July 13, 2018 Conference paper Open Access

Hybrid robotic system combining passive exoskeleton and functional electrical stimulation for upper limb stroke rehabilitation: Preliminary results of the retrainer multi-center randomized controlled trial

Gasperini, Giulio; Rossini, Mauro; Proserpio, Davide; Immick, Nancy; Augusten, Andreas; Pedrocchi, Alessandra; Ambrosini, Emilia; Ferrante, Simona; Zajc, Johanness; Baccinelli, Walter; Bulgheroni, Maria; Krakow, Karsten; Molteni, Franco

Stroke is the main cause of acquired adult disability with major impact on arm function. The combined use of Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) and robotic technologies is strongly advocated to improve rehabilitation outcomes after stroke. We present the preliminary data of a multi-center Randomized Controlled Trial aimed at evaluating the effectiveness of this system with respect to conventional therapy for sub-acute stroke upper limb rehabilitation.