Research Objectives
To establish utility and usability of the MYO Gesture Armband (MYO) as a controller for playing virtual reality (VR) games as a tool for hand motor rehabilitation.
Design
A criterion standard design to establish utility and a case control design to determine usability of the MYO.
Setting
Human Performance Laboratory at Washington University in St. Louis.
Participants
Six control participants were recruited to establish utility of the MYO. Six participants, three controls and three persons with ANI, were recruited to establish usability of the MYO. Participation in the study was voluntary and all participants provided informed consent prior to involvement. The Human Research Protection Office approved the research protocol.
Interventions
To established utility, participants performed three trials of five fine motor submaximal voluntary contractions using standard electromyography and the MYO. To determine usability, participants engaged in 15 minutes of VR gaming using the MYO.
Main Outcome Measure(s)
Magnitude of submaximal voluntary contractions from standard EMG and MYO, DASH questionnaire scores, two Intrinsic Motivation Inventory subscale scores, qualitative data from a semi-structured interview, and number of repetitions achieved during 15 minutes gameplay.
Results
For three of the four movements examined, MYO exhibited good-excellent test-retest reliability (p > .05) and good concurrent validity relative to standard EMG (r = .82-.88). All participants rated the gaming therapy to be enjoyable, and engaging. Participants were able to complete an average of 400 repetitions during fifteen minutes of gameplay.
Conclusions
The MYO is a useable tool for engaging in fine motor VR gaming with good utility. Participants found this activity motivating and engaging. The number of repetitions achieved is promising for motor learning to regain fine motor movements through rehabilitation gaming therapy in the future.
Key Words
Electromyography, Video games, User-computer interface, Recovery of function/physiology, Rehabilitation
Disclosures
None disclosed.
Article Info
Publication History
Research Poster 765
Identification
Copyright
© 2016 Published by Elsevier Inc.
