In order to perform everyday tasks such as grasping a glass or picking up a book, the stroke patient has to relearn motor skills damaged following the stroke.  They need to learn how to correctly control the movement of each finger and wrist.  As the HandTutor(TM) rehabilitation program improves motor control impairments, it allows the patient to start to perform and gain maximum benefit from functional task exercises which are used during traditional post-stroke hand therapy.  A combination of the HandTutor(TM) program with traditional hand therapy produces significant improvements in the performance of everyday tasks.

According to Avraham Cohen, clinical director of MediTouch, “With the introduction of the HandTutor(TM) we have solved two major problems in stroke rehabilitation. Firstly, we have never had a rehabilitation tool that allows the patient to do customized repetitive and intensive training and holds their interest. The patient remains motivated, boredom does not set in, and the stroke rehabilitation patient is continually challenged to improve his exercise performance.

“Secondly, stroke rehabilitation has always been limited by the number of treatments and follow up sessions that the clinician can perform. With the introduction of the HandTutor(TM) the patient can continue the exercise program at home or at their own leisure with minimum clinician support or through telerehabilitation. At the same time the system allows for a continued quantitative assessment and detailed follow up that allows the clinician to offer a tailored affordable rehabilitation program to each of his patients.”

Avraham Cohen concludes, “One of the key problems in stroke rehabilitation is that stroke patients look at their impaired limb during exercise as they rely on visual input to understand the position of their limb. This visual information prevents the brain from “listening to” hand and finger position sensory signals or proprioception. During exercise with the HandTutor(TM), the patient looks at the screen and not the damaged limb, there is less visual information to mask the proprioception signals and successful hand rehabilitation is achieved more quickly.  

Impressive clinical case studies using the HandTutor(TM) have also been performed on patients suffering from both centrally based diseases such as Parkinson, Cerebral Palsy and Development Co-ordination Disorders in children. The HandTutor(TM) is also indicated for Tendon transfer, Orthopedic injuries including Brachial and Ulnar nerve and Head Injuries.  

MediTouch is a private company founded in 2004 and headquartered in Netanya Israel. Their innovative technology will allow millions of people around the world to achieve successful limb rehabilitation.

MediTouch is currently prototyping other brace and software systems for Knee, Elbow and Ankle rehabilitation. These systems will be used for the treatment and evaluation of Stroke patients with gait impairment, Dropped foot, Knee surgery (Arthroscopy and TKR) and elbow injuries. visit www.MediTouch.co.il

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