Investigating the Effect of Leap Motion on Upper Extremity Rehabilitation in Children with Cerebral Palsy: A Randomized Controlled Trial

ABSTRACT

In this randomized clinical trial, we look for the following questions’ answer: How does the integration of LMC affect (1) upper extremity (UE) function, (2) grip strength, and (3) lateral and palmar pinch strength in children with cerebral palsy (CP), in comparison with conventional rehabilitation methods? Twenty patients were randomly assigned to LMC (case) or conventional (control) groups. The grip, lateral and palmar pinch forces increased in case group patients more than control group both at the end of intervention (P < .001 for all three), and at 20 weeks’ follow-up (P values 0.035, 0.002, and 0.002). The Quality of Upper Extremity Skills Test (QUEST) score changes were similar between two groups, except for grasp score at the end of step 2 and 3 (P = .04 and 0.01, respectively). The addition of LMC to the rehabilitation program of patients with CP may improve the UE motor function outcomes.

KEYWORDS:

• Cerebral Palsy
• leap motion controller
• rehabilitation
• upper extremity, physiotherapy
• virtual reality

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data Availability Statement

Correspondence and requests for materials should be addressed to [email protected].

Ethical Review Committee Statement

The Ethics Committee of the University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences, Tehran, Iran, granted ethical approval for this study (approval number: IR.USWR.REC.1400.063). The study has been registered with the Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials (IRCT) under the approval code (IRCT20210616051599N1). The conduct of this research adheres to the principles outlined in the Helsinki Declaration. The patients were provided with written informed consent forms before they were enrolled.

Financial Support

This work was supported as a research project financed by the Research Council of University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences (research project number 15,170,223).

Level of Evidence

Level II (IRCT20210616051599N1)

Statement of the Location

The present study was performed in the University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences.

Supplementary material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at https://doi.org/10.1080/17518423.2023.2203210

Additional information

Funding

The work was supported by the University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences [15170223].