Technologies for Monitoring and Rehabilitation of Motor Disabilities

Dear Colleagues,

Motor disabilities are a major consequence of acute events, neurodegenerative processes, accidents, and injuries, severely impacting people's safety, independence, and quality of life. Dysfunctions in gait, postural stability and balance, upper limbs, and hand dexterity are among the most evident and disabling motor impairments. In addition, motor disabilities are strictly related to speech, swallowing, or facial expression disorders. Deficits in planning, control, and motor coordination impair the simplest daily activities, negatively affecting the psychological and emotional domains (frustration, depression, and anxiety are common consequences), thus complicating an already compromised clinical picture. Rehabilitation treatments aim to restore and optimize impaired functions through tailored physical activities and physiotherapy programs in order to regain autonomy and improve quality of life. However, traditional rehabilitation programs generally last only a few weeks and are accessible in health facilities to only a few patients at a time. Thanks to recent developments, technologies are already gaining more space in supporting the clinical management of patients. However, technologies may also play a crucial role in rehabilitation by integrating traditional protocols with new tools and methodological approaches that ensure continuity of treatment, home usability, and accessibility to more patients. Another advantage of technological solutions is the possibility to monitor performance quantitatively, continuously, and objectively, thus allowing improvements and worsening to be measured and interventional strategies (pharmacological and rehabilitative) to be customized based on the patient's current condition.

This Special Issue aims to collect recent studies and applications focused on the use of technological solutions and methodological approaches for rehabilitation and monitoring of motor disabilities and related effects. We welcome authors submitting manuscripts (original papers, reviews, and others) that focus on, but are not limited to, the following topics:

• Sensors for rehabilitation and monitoring of motor disabilities (such as wearable sensors, optical sensors, video analysis, electromyography, smart textiles, and sensorized fabrics);
• Innovative approaches for rehabilitation (such as virtual reality, augmented reality, exergaming, serious games, and gamification);
• Artificial intelligence, machine, and deep learning to support clinical decision making;
• Usability issues related to technological approaches for rehabilitation.

You may choose our Joint Special Issue in IJERPH.

Dr. Claudia Ferraris
Prof. Dr. Veronica Cimolin
Guest Editors

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