NEURO^®'s qualitative therapeutic effects captured from action patterns in Action Research Arm Test's "Hand to back of head".

―Change in shoulder joint flexion angle with obvious bimodality―

Abstract

Action research arm test (ARAT) is used to determine the effect of NovEl intervention using repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation and intensive occupational therapy (NEURO^®) and is suitable for detecting changes in upper limb function in patients with chronic stroke. The evaluation can be applied to motor paralysis of a wide range of severity. The first evaluation item of Gross movement of ARAT subtest “Hand to back of head” is related to the grooming activity that the patient wants to acquire, but it requires a wide range of motion of shoulder and elbow joints, so it is a difficult evaluation item. In some cases, it is difficult to show improvement of upper limb function. In this study, 3 trials before and after NEURO^® were recorded with a 3D motion analyzer, and shoulder flexion angles were obtained. Before NEURO®, the angle change of shoulder flexion was a gradual bimodal, but after NEURO^®, the angle change became clear bimodal. From the quantitative evaluation using three-dimensional motion analysis, the movement pattern of “Hand to back of head” was captured. This is thought to be due to the improvement of voluntary improvement of the upper limbs and attenuation of spasticity caused by NEURO^®, suggesting that the cooperative movement of the shoulder and elbow joints improved.