Fine motor skills have long been recognized as an important foundation for development in other domains. However, more precise insights into the role of fine motor skills, and their relationships to other skills in mediating early educational achievements, are needed to support the development of optimal educational interventions. We explored concurrent relationships between two components of f...

OBJECTIVE The purpose of the study was to evaluate the feasibility and efficacy of robot-assisted hand rehabilitation in improving arm function abilities in sub-acute hemiplegic patients. DESIGN Randomized controlled pilot study. SETTING Inpatient rehabilitation centers. PARTICIPANTS Thirty hemiplegic stroke patients (Ashworth spasticity index <3) were recruited and randomly divided into ...

Brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) allow a user to interact with a computer system using thought. However, only recently have devices capable of providing sophisticated multi-dimensional control been achieved non-invasively. A major goal for non-invasive BCI systems has been to provide continuous, intuitive, and accurate control, while retaining a high level of user autonomy. By employing electro...

BACKGROUND Long-term piano training might induce some biochemical and structural adaptations in the intrinsic muscles of the hand or change the motor strategy of the nervous system. The main purpose of this study was to analyze whether the intrinsic muscles of the hands of pianists and sedentary controls differ in electromyographic characteristics at different strengths. METHODS Fifteen colle...

BACKGROUND Previous studies have shown the importance of motor control in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. The objective of our study was to verify any statistically significant differences of fine motor performance in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms compared to the control group in proprioceptive sensory condition. METHOD Proprioc...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Mirror movements (MM) are involuntary synchronous movements of one limb during voluntary unilateral movements of the opposite limb. We measured MM in stroke and control subjects and evaluated whether MM after stroke are related to motor function. METHODS Twenty-three patients and 16 control subjects were studied. A computerized dynamometer was used during two squeezing ...

Musician's dystonia (MD) is a task-specific movement disorder that causes loss of voluntary motor control while playing the instrument. A subgroup of patients displays the so-called sensory trick: alteration of somatosensory input, e.g., by wearing a latex glove, may result in short-term improvement of motor control. In this study, the glove-effect in pianists with MD was quantified and its pot...

OBJECTIVE Intracortical brain-machine interfaces (BMIs) are a promising source of prosthesis control signals for individuals with severe motor disabilities. Previous BMI studies have primarily focused on predicting and controlling whole-arm movements; precise control of hand kinematics, however, has not been fully demonstrated. Here, we investigate the continuous decoding of precise finger move...