[news 2003 - 2004]

October 25, 2004

Robotic invention for assessing motor skills in stroke and spinal cord patients debuts at international conference

KINGSTON, ON – Neuroscientists from Queen’s will showcase a new robotic system for assessing the motor skills of people with stroke and spinal cord injuries at this week’s international Society for Neuroscience conference in San Diego.

The only device of its kind that measures multi-joint movement at the shoulder, elbow and hand, the patented KINARM is now available for both basic and clinical research on limb motor performance. Several studies using KINARM have already led to new findings about how the brain coordinates limb movements.

Earlier versions of the Queen’s system are currently in use at a number of institutions in Canada and the U.S., including the University of Western Ontario, University of Alberta, University of Chicago, Brown University, Duke University, and the State University of New York (SUNY).

KINARM (Kinesiological Instrument for Normal and Altered Reaching Movement), with its associated wheelchair, work station, and data acquisition system fills a small room. The entire device was dismantled from its site in Dr. Scott’s Queen’s laboratory for the first time last week, and shipped to San Diego for its debut at the neuroscience conference.

“We see this as a major step forward that will make a huge difference in providing a foundation for assessing and rehabilitating patients with various brain injuries,” says Queen’s neuroscientist Dr. Stephen Scott, who invented KINARM and is an expert on the role of the brain in controlling limb movements.

“When assessing someone who has had a stroke or a traumatic brain injury, and trying to determine the severity of their deficit, it’s important to obtain as much information as possible,” says Dr. Scott. While other devices look at limb movement as it relates to the hand, the added capability of measuring multi-joint movement gives KINARM a decided advantage, he notes.

Patented through Queen’s technology transfer office, PARTEQ Innovations, KINARM has hinge joints aligned with a person’s shoulder and elbow allowing horizontal arm movements, and a computer projection system that provides virtual targets in the plane of the arm. Each joint can be manipulated independently, with different loads added selectively. This allows the device to independently manipulate the mechanics of the shoulder and elbow joints during multi-joint tasks.

“Integrated wheelchair seating that accommodates patients with a variety of disabilities, and the fact that the system is bilateral (allowing either or both arms to be tested) are other unique features of KINARM,” says Dr. Ian Brown, manager of biomedical product development for KINARM. A software package is also available, which combines data acquisition and data analysis systems, he adds. “We provide the whole lab, for either basic or clinical research.”

Funding for this research has come in part from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC).

For further details on KINARM, see:
http://www.bkintechnologies.com

More information on Dr. Scott’s limb movement research is available at: http://limb.biomed.queensu.ca

PLEASE NOTE: A high-resolution colour digital illustration of KINARM is available upon request.

Contacts:

Nancy Dorrance, Queen’s News & Media Services, 613.533.2869
Lorinda Peterson, Queen’s News & Media Services, 613.533.3234

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