Robotic biomarkers in RETT Syndrome: Evaluating stiffness

Abstract

We are currently investigating the ability of robotic tools to assess arm, wrist, and ankle movement in persons with RETT Syndrome who otherwise are non-responsive. In this paper, we present a case study involving 3 young women with RETT at an outpatient rehabilitation setting. The three subjects were evaluated bilaterally at the arm (shoulder-elbow), forearm, wrist, and ankle with different robots normally used to deliver therapy to stroke patients. Clinical and robotic evaluation took place on two different days within a week. We employed the Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS) and robotic-mediated quasi-stiffness estimates. This preliminary study indicates that persons with RETT syndrome tolerated the evaluation and that a robotic biomarker might be a useful clinical tool to determine the impact of medical interventions in these youngsters.