Reduction of Prolonged Excessive Pressure in Seated Persons With Paraplegia Using Wireless Lingual Tactile Feedback:...

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Rehabilitation Medicine
• Clinical Trials

Background:

• Pressure ulcers (PU) represent a significant healthcare cost and morbidity risk.
• Prolonged excessive pressure is a primary cause of PU development.
• Individuals with spinal cord injuries (SCI) are at high risk for PU.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate a novel clinical strategy using a Tongue Display Unit (TDU) for PU prevention.
• To assess the TDU's effectiveness in reducing prolonged excessive pressure in SCI patients.
• To investigate the impact of perceptive supplementation on weight shifting behavior.

Main Methods:

• A randomized, controlled, parallel-group trial involving 12 SCI subjects.
• Subjects underwent two one-hour sessions, one with TDU activation and one without.
• Pressure mapping sensors and intention-to-treat analysis were employed to measure outcomes.

Main Results:

• The intervention group using the TDU demonstrated significantly higher improvement in weight shifting compared to the control group.
• The ratio of prolonged excessive pressure was notably lower in the TDU intervention group.
• While pressure mapping sensors were convenient, the TDU usability requires further improvement.

Conclusions:

• Perceptive supplementation systems, like the TDU, show potential in guiding posture adaptation to reduce PU risk in SCI individuals.
• The study highlights the benefit of alerting users to modify posture and reduce prolonged pressure.
• Further development is needed to enhance the TDU's daily life convenience for effective PU prevention.