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Improving skin screening capabilities for Veterans with spinal cord injuries
Christine M Olney1,2, Sara Kemmer1, Amy Gravely1
1Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Health Care System, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
The Journal of Spinal Cord Medicine
|January 13, 2025
Summary
Veterans with spinal cord injury (SCI) found a new camera-based system superior for skin checks compared to traditional mirrors. This technology improves accuracy and user satisfaction for essential self-screening.
Area of Science:
- Assistive Technology
- Rehabilitation Medicine
- Medical Device Development
Background:
- Clinical guidelines recommend daily skin self-screening for individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI).
- Standard long-handled self-inspection mirrors (LSIM) present usability challenges for many Veterans with SCI.
- There is a need for improved assistive technologies to facilitate effective skin monitoring in SCI populations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare the effectiveness and user satisfaction of a novel camera-based self-inspection system (CSIS) against the traditional LSIM.
- To gather user feedback for iterative engineering and development of the CSIS for potential industry transfer.
Main Methods:
- Five Veterans with SCI participated in a comparative study.
- Participants used both LSIM and CSIS to identify visual markers (stickers) on high-risk skin areas.
- Data collection included sticker identification accuracy, interview responses, and the QUEST 2.0 satisfaction questionnaire.
Main Results:
- Veterans with SCI demonstrated significantly higher accuracy in identifying sticker letters and colors using the CSIS compared to the LSIM (P<.001 for both).
- The CSIS was significantly preferred over the LSIM based on QUEST 2.0 satisfaction scores (P=.004).
- Large effect sizes (Cohen's D) were observed for all paired comparisons, indicating substantial differences.
Conclusions:
- The CSIS offers improved visualization and higher user satisfaction for skin self-screening in individuals with SCI.
- Adoption of the CSIS has the potential to enhance the quality and acceptance of skin screening strategies.
- This technology represents a promising advancement in assistive devices for SCI self-care.
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