AUTHOR=Huang Yanhuan , Yang Bibo , Wong Thomson Wai-Lung , Ng Shamay S. M. , Hu Xiaoling TITLE=Personalized robots for long-term telerehabilitation after stroke: a perspective on technological readiness and clinical translation JOURNAL=Frontiers in Rehabilitation Sciences VOLUME=4 YEAR=2024 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/rehabilitation-sciences/articles/10.3389/fresc.2023.1329927 DOI=10.3389/fresc.2023.1329927 ISSN=2673-6861 ABSTRACT=

Stroke rehabilitation, which demands consistent, intensive, and adaptable intervention in the long term, faced significant challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic. During this time, telerehabilitation emerged as a noteworthy complement to traditional rehabilitation services, offering the convenience of at-home care delivery and overcoming geographical and resource limitations. Self-help rehabilitation robots deliver repetitive and intensive physical assistance, thereby alleviating the labor burden. However, robots have rarely demonstrated long-term readiness for poststroke telerehabilitation services. The transition from research trials to general clinical services presents several challenges that may undermine the rehabilitative gains observed in these studies. This perspective discusses the technological readiness of personal use robots in the context of telerehabilitation and identifies the potential challenges for their clinical translation. The goal is to leverage technology to seamlessly integrate it into standard clinical workflows, ultimately enhancing the outcomes of stroke rehabilitation.