Effects of the EMG-driven Hand Robot Training in Patients With Hand Dysfunction Due to Nerve Damage From Burns

Recruiting now · Not applicable

Conditions studied: Burn Hand, Rehabilitation

In brief

Hands are the most frequent burn injury sites. Appropriate rehabilitation is essential to ensure good functional recovery. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of EMG driven robotic rehabilitation on hand functions and skin characteristics of patients with nerve damage caused by burns. A randomized controlled, single blind trial recruited the patients with hand dysfunction after burn injury. The participants were randomly allocated to experimental group (EG) and control group (CG) for 5 days a week and totally 60 sessions for 12 weeks. The EG received robotic assisted hand training with the EMG-driven exoskeleton hand robot (Hand of Hope®.Rehab-Robotics Company) and conventional occupational therapy. The CG performed conventional occupational therapy, including hand range of motion (ROM) exercises and hand functional training twice a day for 12 weeks. Outcome measures were as follows: 10-point visual analog scale for pain, Jebsen-Taylor hand function test, grip strength, Purdue Pegboard test, joint ROMs, ultrasound measurement of scar thickness, and skin characteristics before and immediately after 12 weeks of treatment. There is still no established protocol for burn injury rehabilitation. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of EMG driven robotic rehabilitation on hand functions and skin characteristics of patients with nerve damage and scarring caused by burns.

Key facts

Study ID

NCT06563336

Run by

Hangang Sacred Heart Hospital

People needed

60

Starts

2023-12-06

Expected to finish

2024-12-30

Last updated by the study team

2024-08-20

Who can join

Age: 18 and older, up to 75. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: not accepted.

You may qualify if…

• ≥ 18 years old
• more than 50% of the hand is burned
• burns occurred on the right hand, which is the dominant hand
• had a deep partial-thickness (second-degree) or a full-thickness (third-degree) burn, which had been treated with a split-thickness skin graft (STSG) after the burn injury
• nerve injury to the hand was confirmed by electromyography
• all patients were in the re-epithelialization phase

You may not qualify if…

• other causes of musculoskeletal diseases (rheumatoid arthritis and degenerative joint diseases et al) that may affect hand dysfunctions
• unstable scars (acute infection or coagulopathy) that may cause damage to the scar area during hand treatment

Where it is running

• Hangang sacred heart hodpital — Seoul, South Korea (enrolling)

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

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