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Lee H, Cho S, Kim D, Lee T, Kim HS. Bioelectric medicine: unveiling the therapeutic potential of micro-current stimulation. Biomed Eng Lett 2024; 14:367-392. [PMID: 38645592 PMCID: PMC11026362 DOI: 10.1007/s13534-024-00366-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2023] [Revised: 02/16/2024] [Accepted: 02/18/2024] [Indexed: 04/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Bioelectric medicine (BEM) refers to the use of electrical signals to modulate the electrical activity of cells and tissues in the body for therapeutic purposes. In this review, we particularly focused on the microcurrent stimulation (MCS), because, this can take place at the cellular level with sub-sensory application unlike other stimuli. These extremely low-level currents mimic the body's natural electrical activity and are believed to promote various physiological processes. To date, MCS has limited use in the field of BEM with applications in several therapeutic purposes. However, recent studies provide hopeful signs that MCS is more scalable and widely applicable than what has been used so far. Therefore, this review delves into the landscape of MCS, shedding light on the multifaceted applications and untapped potential of MCS in the realm of healthcare. Particularly, we summarized the hierarchical mediation from cell to whole body responses by MCS including its physiological applications. Our final objective of this review is to contribute to the growing body of literature that unveils the captivating potential of BEM, with MCS poised at the intersection of technological innovation and the intricacies of the human body.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hana Lee
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Yonsei University, Seoul, Gangwon 26493 South Korea
| | - Seungkwan Cho
- Gfyhealth Inc., Seongnam, Gyeonggi 13488 South Korea
| | - Doyong Kim
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Yonsei University, Seoul, Gangwon 26493 South Korea
| | - Taehyun Lee
- Gfyhealth Inc., Seongnam, Gyeonggi 13488 South Korea
| | - Han Sung Kim
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Yonsei University, Seoul, Gangwon 26493 South Korea
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Jafari E, Erfanian A. A Distributed Automatic Control Framework for Simultaneous Control of Torque and Cadence in Functional Electrical Stimulation Cycling. IEEE Trans Neural Syst Rehabil Eng 2022; 30:1908-1919. [PMID: 35793297 DOI: 10.1109/tnsre.2022.3188735] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
One of the major challenges facing functional electrical stimulation (FES) cycling is the design of an automatic control system that addresses the problem of disturbance with unknown bound and time-varying behavior of the muscular system. The previous methods for FES-cycling are based on the system modeling and require pre-adjustment of the control parameters which are based on the model parameters. These will degrade the FES-cycling performance and limit the clinical application of the methods. In this paper, a distributed cooperative control framework, which is based on an adaptive higher-order sliding mode (AHOSM) controller, is proposed for simultaneous control of torque and cadence in FES-cycling. The proposed control system is free-model which does not require any pre-adjustment of the control parameters and does not need the boundary of the disturbance to be known. Another major issue in FES-cycling is the stimulation pattern. In the paper, an automatic pattern generator is proposed which is capable of providing not only the regions of the crank angle in which each muscle group should be stimulated but also a specific gain for each muscle group. The results of the simulation studies and experiments on three spinal cord injuries showed that the proposed control strategy significantly increases the efficiency and tracking accuracy of motor-assisted FES-cycling in paraplegic patients and decreases the power consumption compared to HOSM controller with the fixed stimulation pattern. Reducing power consumption can slow down muscle fatigue and consequently increase cycling endurance. The average of cadence and torque tracking errors over three subjects using the proposed method are 5.77± 0.5% and 5.23± 0.8%, respectively.
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Jafari E, Aksoez EA, Kajganic P, Metani A, Popovic-Maneski L, Bergeron V. Optimization of Seating Position and Stimulation Pattern in Functional Electrical Stimulation Cycling: Simulation Study. ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE OF THE IEEE ENGINEERING IN MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY SOCIETY. IEEE ENGINEERING IN MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY SOCIETY. ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE 2022; 2022:725-731. [PMID: 36085773 DOI: 10.1109/embc48229.2022.9871339] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Two significant challenges facing functional electrical stimulation (FES) cycling are the low power output and early onset of muscle fatigue, mainly due to the non-physiological and superficial recruitment of motor units and weakness of the antagonistic muscles. Thus optimization of the cycling biomechanical properties and stimulation pattern to achieve maximum output power with minimum applied electrical stimulus is of great importance. To find the optimal seating position and stimulation pattern, the previous works either ignored the muscle's force-velocity and force-length properties or employed complicated muscle models which was a massive barrier to clinical experiments. In this work, an easy-to-use and precise muscle model in conjunction with Jacobian-based torque transfer functions were adopted to determine the optimal seating position, trunk angle, crank arm length, and stimulation intervals. Furthermore, the impact of muscle force-velocity factor in finding the optimal seating position and stimulation intervals was investigated. The simulation models showed the trivial effect of the force-velocity factor on the resulting optimal seating position of six healthy simulated subjects. This method can enhance the FES-cycling performance and shorten the time-consuming process of muscle model identification for optimization purposes.
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The Relationship between Physical Activity Level and Functional Status of Subjects with High Spinal Cord Injury. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2022; 19:ijerph19031787. [PMID: 35162810 PMCID: PMC8835456 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph19031787] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2021] [Revised: 02/01/2022] [Accepted: 02/02/2022] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Spinal cord injuries are one of disability in Poland and in the world. METHODS 80 subjects with a transverse injury of the cervical spinal cord were enrolled in the study. The study group included men aged 20-50, 33.1 ± 7.5. A total of 40 (50%) of the subjects comprised the physically active group (AG)-subjects doing wheelchair sport twice a week for 90 min a day. The physically inactive group (IG) comprised 40 (50%) subjects who had not participated in any sports activities. Statistical analyses were carried out using Shapiro-Wilk W-test and Mann-Whitney U test. RESULTS Significant differences were found between the physically active and inactive men with regard to their functionality status. The biggest differences were found for turning over (p < 0.001) and in adopting a sitting position (p < 0.001). Persons in the AG group had better results in all assessed activities. The biggest differences were observed in the field of toilet and dressing up: tooth-brushing p < 0.007 and washing the top part of the body p < 0.002. CONCLUSIONS People participating in regular physical activity-wheelchair rugby-after spinal cord injury have a better relationship with better fitness, greater independence and a better functional status.
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Coelho-Magalhães T, Fachin-Martins E, Silva A, Azevedo Coste C, Resende-Martins H. Development of a High-Power Capacity Open Source Electrical Stimulation System to Enhance Research into FES-Assisted Devices: Validation of FES Cycling. SENSORS 2022; 22:s22020531. [PMID: 35062492 PMCID: PMC8778229 DOI: 10.3390/s22020531] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2021] [Revised: 01/06/2022] [Accepted: 01/09/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
Since the first Cybathlon 2016, when twelve teams competed in the FES bike race, we have witnessed a global effort towards the development of stimulation and control strategies to improve FES-assisted devices, particularly for cycling, as a means to practice a recreational physical activity. As a result, a set of technical notes and research paved the way for many other studies and the potential behind FES-assisted cycling has been consolidated. However, engineering research needs instrumented devices to support novel developments and enable precise assessment. Therefore, some researchers struggle to develop their own FES-assisted devices or find it challenging to implement their instrumentation using commercial devices, which often limits the implementation of advanced control strategies and the possibility to connect different types of sensor. In this regard, we hypothesize that it would be advantageous for some researchers in our community to enjoy access to an entire open-source FES platform that allows different control strategies to be implemented, offers greater adaptability and power capacity than commercial devices, and can be used to assist different functional activities in addition to cycling. Hence, it appears to be of interest to make our proprietary electrical stimulation system an open-source device and to prove its capabilities by addressing all the aspects necessary to implement a FES cycling system. The high-power capacity stimulation device is based on a constant current topology that allows the creation of biphasic electrical pulses with amplitude, width, and frequency up to 150 mA, 1000 µs, and 100 Hz, respectively. A mobile application (Android) was developed to set and modify the stimulation parameters of up to eight stimulation channels. A proportional-integral controller was implemented for cadence tracking with the aim to improve the overall cycling performance. A volunteer with complete paraplegia participated in the functional testing of the system. He was able to cycle indoors for 45 min, accomplish distances of more than 5 km using a passive cycling trainer, and pedal 2400 m overground in 32 min. The results evidenced the capacity of our FES cycling system to be employed as a cycling tool for individuals with spinal cord injury. The methodological strategies used to improve FES efficiency suggest the possibility of maximizing pedaling duration through more advanced control techniques.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tiago Coelho-Magalhães
- Graduate Program in Electrical Engineering, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Av. Antônio Carlos 6627, Belo Horizonte 31270-901, Brazil;
- Correspondence:
| | - Emerson Fachin-Martins
- Plataforma de Serviços Tecnológicos BEMTEVI, Parque Científico e Tecnológico, Universidade de Brasília, Brasília 70910-900, Brazil;
| | - Andressa Silva
- Centro de Treinamento Esportivo da Escola de Educação Física, Fisioterapia e Terapia Ocupacional, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte 31310-000, Brazil;
| | - Christine Azevedo Coste
- National Institute for Research in Computer Science and Automation (Inria), Camin Team, 34090 Montpellier, France;
| | - Henrique Resende-Martins
- Graduate Program in Electrical Engineering, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Av. Antônio Carlos 6627, Belo Horizonte 31270-901, Brazil;
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Fang CY, Lien ASY, Tsai JL, Yang HC, Chan HL, Chen RS, Chang YJ. The Effect and Dose-Response of Functional Electrical Stimulation Cycling Training on Spasticity in Individuals With Spinal Cord Injury: A Systematic Review With Meta-Analysis. Front Physiol 2021; 12:756200. [PMID: 34867459 PMCID: PMC8640241 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2021.756200] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2021] [Accepted: 10/21/2021] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Background: To investigate the effect and dose-response of functional electrical stimulation cycling (FES-cycling) training on spasticity in the individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI). Method: Five electronic databases [PubMed, Scopus, Medline (Proquest), Embase, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL)] were searched before September 2021. The human trials and studies of English language were only included. Two authors independently reviewed and extracted the searched studies. The primary outcome measure was spasticity assessed by Modified Ashworth Scale or Ashworth Scale for lower limbs. The secondary outcome measures were walking abilities, such as 6 Min Walk Test (6MWT), Timed Up and Go (TUG), and lower limbs muscle strength (LEMS). A subgroup analysis was performed to investigate the efficacious threshold number of training sessions. A meta-regression analysis was used to examine the linear relationship between the training sessions and the effect on spasticity. Results: A total of 764 studies were identified. After screening, 12 selected studies were used for the qualitative synthesis, in which eight of them were quantitatively analyzed. Eight studies included ninety-nine subjects in total with SCI (male: female = 83:16). The time since injury was from less than 4 weeks to 17 years. The age ranged from 20 to 67 years. American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) impairment level of the number of participants was 59 for ASIA A, 11 for ASIA B, 18 for ASIA C, and 11 for ASIA D. There were 43 subjects with tetraplegia and 56 subjects with paraplegia. Spasticity decreased significantly (95% CI = - 1.538 to - 0.182, p = 0.013) in favor of FES-cycling training. The walking ability and LEMS also improved significantly in favor of FES-cycling training. The subgroup analysis showed that spasticity decreased significantly only in more than 20 training sessions (95% CI = - 1.749 to - 0.149, p = 0.020). The meta-regression analysis showed training sessions and spasticity were not significantly associated (coefficient = - 0.0025, SE = 0.0129, p = 0.849, R 2 analog = 0.37). Conclusion: Functional electrical stimulation-cycling training can improve spasticity, walking ability, and the strength of the lower limbs in the individuals with SCI. The number of training sessions is not linearly related to the decrease of spasticity. Twenty sessions of FES-cycling training are required to obtain the efficacy to decrease spasticity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chia-Ying Fang
- School of Physical Therapy and Graduate Institute of Rehabilitation Science, College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan
| | - Angela Shin-Yu Lien
- School of Nursing, College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan.,Healthy Aging Research Center, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan.,Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Internal Medicine, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taoyuan, Taiwan
| | - Jia-Ling Tsai
- School of Nursing, College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan
| | - Hsiao-Chu Yang
- School of Physical Therapy and Graduate Institute of Rehabilitation Science, College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan
| | - Hsiao-Lung Chan
- Department of Electrical Engineering, College of Engineering, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan.,Neuroscience Research Center, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taoyuan, Taiwan
| | - Rou-Shayn Chen
- Neuroscience Research Center, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taoyuan, Taiwan.,Department of Neurology, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taoyuan, Taiwan.,School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan
| | - Ya-Ju Chang
- School of Physical Therapy and Graduate Institute of Rehabilitation Science, College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan.,Healthy Aging Research Center, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan.,Neuroscience Research Center, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taoyuan, Taiwan
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van der Scheer JW, Goosey-Tolfrey VL, Valentino SE, Davis GM, Ho CH. Functional electrical stimulation cycling exercise after spinal cord injury: a systematic review of health and fitness-related outcomes. J Neuroeng Rehabil 2021; 18:99. [PMID: 34118958 PMCID: PMC8196442 DOI: 10.1186/s12984-021-00882-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2020] [Accepted: 05/19/2021] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES The objective of this review was to summarize and appraise evidence on functional electrical stimulation (FES) cycling exercise after spinal cord injury (SCI), in order to inform the development of evidence-based clinical practice guidelines. METHODS PubMed, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, EMBASE, SPORTDiscus, and CINAHL were searched up to April 2021 to identify FES cycling exercise intervention studies including adults with SCI. In order to capture the widest array of evidence available, any outcome measure employed in such studies was considered eligible. Two independent reviewers conducted study eligibility screening, data extraction, and quality appraisal using Cochranes' Risk of Bias or Downs and Black tools. Each study was designated as a Level 1, 2, 3 or 4 study, dependent on study design and quality appraisal scores. The certainty of the evidence for each outcome was assessed using GRADE ratings ('High', 'Moderate', 'Low', or 'Very low'). RESULTS Ninety-two studies met the eligibility criteria, comprising 999 adults with SCI representing all age, sex, time since injury, lesion level and lesion completeness strata. For muscle health (e.g., muscle mass, fiber type composition), significant improvements were found in 3 out of 4 Level 1-2 studies, and 27 out of 32 Level 3-4 studies (GRADE rating: 'High'). Although lacking Level 1-2 studies, significant improvements were also found in nearly all of 35 Level 3-4 studies on power output and aerobic fitness (e.g., peak power and oxygen uptake during an FES cycling test) (GRADE ratings: 'Low'). CONCLUSION Current evidence indicates that FES cycling exercise improves lower-body muscle health of adults with SCI, and may increase power output and aerobic fitness. The evidence summarized and appraised in this review can inform the development of the first international, evidence-based clinical practice guidelines for the use of FES cycling exercise in clinical and community settings of adults with SCI. Registration review protocol: CRD42018108940 (PROSPERO).
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Affiliation(s)
- Jan W van der Scheer
- Peter Harrison Centre for Disability Sport, School for Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences, Loughborough University, Epinal Way, Loughborough, LE11 3TU, UK
- The Healthcare Improvement Studies (THIS) Institute, Department of Public Health and Primary Care, School of Clinical Medicine, University of Cambridge, Cambridge Biomedical Campus, Clifford Allbutt Building, Cambridge, CB2 OAH, UK
| | - Victoria L Goosey-Tolfrey
- Peter Harrison Centre for Disability Sport, School for Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences, Loughborough University, Epinal Way, Loughborough, LE11 3TU, UK
| | - Sydney E Valentino
- Department of Kinesiology, McMaster University, Room IWC EG115, 1280 Main St. W., Hamilton, ON, L8S 4K1, Canada
| | - Glen M Davis
- Discipline of Exercise and Sport Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health, Sydney School of Health Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2006, Australia
| | - Chester H Ho
- Division of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2R3, Canada.
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Sijobert B, Le Guillou R, Fattal C, Azevedo Coste C. FES-Induced Cycling in Complete SCI: A Simpler Control Method Based on Inertial Sensors. SENSORS 2019; 19:s19194268. [PMID: 31581489 PMCID: PMC6806329 DOI: 10.3390/s19194268] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2019] [Revised: 08/29/2019] [Accepted: 09/26/2019] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
This article introduces a novel approach for a functional electrical stimulation (FES) controller intended for FES-induced cycling based on inertial measurement units (IMUs). This study aims at simplifying the design of electrical stimulation timing patterns while providing a method that can be adapted to different users and devices. In most of studies and commercial devices, the crank angle is used as an input to trigger stimulation onset. We propose instead to use thigh inclination as the reference information to build stimulation timing patterns. The tilting angles of both thighs are estimated from one inertial sensor located above each knee. An IF–THEN rule algorithm detects, online and automatically, the thigh peak angles in order to start and stop the stimulation of quadriceps muscles, depending on these events. One participant with complete paraplegia was included and was able to propel a recumbent trike using the proposed approach after a very short setting time. This new modality opens the way for a simpler and user-friendly method to automatically design FES-induced cycling stimulation patterns, adapted to clinical use, for multiple bike geometries and user morphologies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benoît Sijobert
- Institut National de Recherche en Informatique et en Automatique (INRIA), Université de Montpellier, 34095 Montpellier, France.
| | - Ronan Le Guillou
- Institut National de Recherche en Informatique et en Automatique (INRIA), Université de Montpellier, 34095 Montpellier, France.
| | | | - Christine Azevedo Coste
- Institut National de Recherche en Informatique et en Automatique (INRIA), Université de Montpellier, 34095 Montpellier, France.
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Azevedo Coste C, Guiraud D, Fattal C. [Neuroprostheses to compensate for motor impairments]. SOINS; LA REVUE DE REFERENCE INFIRMIERE 2019; 64:32-33. [PMID: 31345306 DOI: 10.1016/j.soin.2019.05.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Neuroprostheses are medical devices which, interfaced with the nervous system, are able to provoke the artificial generation of nerve signals. These signals, correctly coded, can then be interpreted by target organs such as the muscles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christine Azevedo Coste
- Institut national de recherche en informatique et automatique (Inria) Montpellier, bâtiment 5, 860, rue Saint-Priest, 34090 Montpellier, France
| | - David Guiraud
- Neurinnov, 70, route de la Vernière, 34600 Les Aires, France.
| | - Charles Fattal
- Centre de rééducation et de réadaptation fonctionnelles La Châtaigneraie, rue Bernard-Astruc, 95180 Menucourt, France
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