“Combining robotic exercise with regular rehabilitation may be the key to successful intervention,” said Kayoko Takahashi, lead author of the study. Robots could allow therapists to focus on helping patients master daily activities while maintaining repetitive training, Takahashi said. The new study involved 60 stroke survivors with hemiplegia (paralysis on one side of the body) treated at six rehabilitation centers in Japan. The patients, average age 65, had suffered a stroke in the previous four to eight weeks. All received standard rehabilitation therapy from an occupational therapist.
I’ve seen something like this before, and I’ve also seen a recent NewsHour report on robots in therapy for people with special needs. The devices shown in the NewsHour report, I think, are closer to the robots Sherry Turkle writes about in Alone Together, but used this way I can’t see the dangers that Turkle sees.
via @natlstrokeassoc
Robot #therapy can improve mobility after #stroke http://t.co/Kts0DF96
— Natl Stroke Assoc (@natlstrokeassoc) January 11, 2013