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Updated: Oct 24, 2025
A Structured Rehabilitation Protocol for Improved Multifunctional Prosthetic Control: A Case Study
Published on: November 6, 2015
Personalized protocol and scoring scale for functional electrical stimulation of the hand: A pilot feasibility study
Jessica K Camacho-Zavala1,1, Ana L Perez-Medina1,1, Jorge A Mercado-Gutierrez2
1Facultad de Ingeniería, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Cd. de México, México.
Background:
Complex personalized Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) protocols for calibrating parameters and electrode positioning have been proposed, most being time-consuming or technically cumbersome for clinical settings. Therefore, there is a need for new personalized FES protocols that generate comfortable, functional hand movements, while being feasible for clinical translation.
Objective:
To develop a personalized FES protocol, comprising electrode placement and parameter selection, to generate hand opening (HO), power grasp (PW) and precision grip (PG) movements, and compare in a pilot feasibility study its performance to a non-personalized protocol based on standard FES guidelines.
Methods:
Two FES protocols, one personalized (P1) and one non-personalized (P2), were used to produce hand movements in twenty-three healthy participants. FES-induced movements were assessed with a new scoring scale which comprises items for selectivity, functionality, and comfort.
Results:
Higher FES-HSS scores were obtained with P1 for all movements: HO (p= 0.00013), PW (p= 0.00007), PG (p= 0.00460). Electrode placement time was significantly shorter for P2 (p= 0.00003). Comfort scores were similar for both protocols.
Conclusions:
The personalized protocol for electrode placement and parameter selection enabled functional FES-induced hand movements and presented advantages over a non-personalized protocol. This protocol warrants further investigation to confirm its suitability for developing upper-limb rehabilitation interventions with clinical translational potential.
