One of the most devastating consequences of early corticospinal lesions is the impaired dexterity that results in a noticeable deficit while manipulating small objects. One purpose of the present study was to investigate the extent to which a deficit in the coordination of fingertip forces when grasping and lifting an object between the thumb and index finger could account for the impaired dext...

OBJECTIVE To assess initial efficacy and tolerability of a thumb opposition splint on manual dexterity, perceived upper limb functioning and occupational performance in patients with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease. DESIGN One group pre-post design. PATIENTS AND METHODS Thirteen patients were provided with a neoprene opposition splint for their dominant hand. Manual dexterity (Sollerman hand fu...

Stroke is the leading cause of long-term disability. Accurate assessment of motor function is important for documenting disability and the effectiveness of rehabilitative treatment. The Manual Function Test (MFT) was developed to evaluate unilateral manual performance in hemiparetic patients after stroke. This test consists of eight items, including the pegboard task, an item assessing dexterit...

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 ...

25 Temporary deafferentation of the upper limb, with ischemic or anesthetic nerve block, has 26 rapid effects on sensorimotor cortex. Cutaneous anesthesia of the forearm has recently been 27 found to improve sensory and motor function of the paretic hand in chronic stroke patients. 28 However, the neurophysiological mechanisms are unknown. The aim of this study was to 29 investigate the behavio...