Innovative methods to assess upper limb strength and function in non-ambulant Duchenne patients

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Rehabilitation Medicine
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Assessing upper limb function in non-ambulant patients, especially those with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), presents significant challenges.
• Existing assessment tools may lack the precision needed to capture functional deficits in this population.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate novel tools for precise measurement of upper limb strength and repetitive movement capacity.
• To evaluate the feasibility and reliability of these new tools in non-ambulant individuals with DMD and healthy controls.

Main Methods:

• Designed and implemented MyoPinch, MyoGrip, MyoWrist, and MoviPlate for assessing pinch, grip, wrist, and repetitive finger/wrist movements.
• Assessed feasibility and reliability in 30 non-ambulant DMD patients and 30 age-matched controls.
• Compared results with established measures like Motor Function Measure, Tapping, and Brooke Upper Extremity Functional Rating Scale.

Main Results:

• MyoGrip, MyoPinch, and MoviPlate demonstrated high feasibility across tested upper limbs.
• Excellent reliability was observed for all tests in both patient and control groups, though MyoWrist was not feasible in patients with contractures.
• Motor capacity showed a decline correlated with time spent in a wheelchair and partially correlated with other clinical measures.

Conclusions:

• The validated panel of upper limb strength and function measures is suitable for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy patients across a spectrum of weakness.
• These tools provide a reliable and feasible method for assessing upper limb function in non-ambulant populations.
• The findings support the use of these novel tools for monitoring disease progression and potentially evaluating interventions in DMD.