Manufacture and clinical application of the forearm pronation's assistant tableware in the severely burned

Even after reconstructive surgery, it is still difficult for patients with severe burns to achieve independent eating activity. In this project, we customized the forearm pronation's assistant tableware to assist in improvement with eating activities.

From January 2017 to December 2018, 28 patients with severe burns including the hands were recruited. For the patient's independent eating activities, we customized forearm pronation's tableware (forks and spoons). We compared modified Barthel index (MBI) and Visual analogue scale (VAS) of satisfaction under three conditions: no auxiliary tableware, ADL universal cuff, or forearm pronation tableware; to compare the duration and the weight of food spilled during lunch when the patients wore the ADL universal cuff or the forearm pronation's tableware. Differences in MBI (rank data) were tested by the Friedman test, differences in VAS (normal distribution) were tested with One-way ANOVA (Bonferroni), differences in the duration and the weight (normal distribution data) were tested by paired sample t test.

After wearing the forearm pronation's assistant tableware, MBI VAS both increased more than when the patients did not wear the auxiliary tableware (all p＜0.05). When the subjects wore forearm pronation tableware, the duration of lunch significantly decreased and the quality of eating activity significantly improved compared to the ADL universal cuff in eating activity (all p＜0.05).

After wearing the forearm pronation's assistant tableware, the patients with severe burns completely or almost completely accomplished independent eating, the duration was decreased, and during eating activity the quality and the satisfaction were improved.

Chinese Clinical trial registry, ChiCTR1800019963.