The REAplan® 3.4 – A new design with enhanced accessibility

At the beginning of 2023, Axinesis launches the new version of the REAplan® robot. This new 3.4 model has improved ease of use of the device thanks to an optimization of its technical and software features.

In response to feedback from the users of the REAplan®, the device has been optimized.  This new version offers a better accessibility to all patients, in every stage of their rehabilitation, and to any technical platform, whatever its size and configuration.

REAplan_3.4_bas

What are its new features ?

  • Increased range of vertical displacement: from 58cm minimum to 124cm maximum. The range of the height adjustment has been increased by 25cm, which improves the adaptation to the patients needs in both a sitting or a standing position.
  • Better accessibility for the patient: thanks to the repositioning of the electric box (20cm lower and 45cm further back), there is more space for all kinds of wheelchairs.
  • Improved robustness:the device is now equipped with 4 legs instead of 2, which improves its stability.   
  • Integration of castor wheels: making the robot mobile to easily  move around in your rehabilitation exercise room.

The REAplan®, now also dedicated to spastic patients

IMG_5977

Thanks to the new features of the REAplan® software, we improve its use for patients with severe spasticity. This update allows the viscosity of the work area to be adapted according to the patient’s spasticity. In addition, we have added a link between this viscosity and the patient’s spasticity assessment protocol in order to be able to suggest an objective value for this viscosity.

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New Chief Medical Officer (CMO) started at Axinesis from the 1st of September !

Since the 1st of September, a new member has joined Axinesis. Maxime Gilliaux, physiotherapist, doctor in motor sciences and Executive MBA in health, is now our Chief Medical Officer. He becomes our clinical and research referent for all of our collaborators.

Can you introduce yourself in a few words?

My name is Maxime Gilliaux, the new Chief Medical Officer (CMO) at Axinesis. As far as my background is concerned, I am a physiotherapist, a doctor in motor sciences and also hold an Executive MBA in health.

I have had different experiences in clinical, research and management fields.

More specifically, I had the chance to work with a team of researchers, clinicians and engineers linked to UCL, including Julien Sapin, CTO and founder of Axinesis. Together, we produced the first scientific evidences on the interest of the REAplan in the evaluation and rehabilitation of cerebral palsy patients, both adults and children. In terms of management, I created and directed a research department in a rehabilitation hospital while at the same time being part of its management committee as clinical project manager.

I think that the synergy of these skills will be a real asset in my responsibilities as CMO at Axinesis.

What are your responsibilities at Axinesis?

Within Axinesis, I will be the clinical and research referent for patients, health professionals, scientists, authorities, and other collaborators.

My responsibilities will be to bring a clinical and research vision to the company. At the clinical level, we will develop with the team innovative solutions that meet the needs of the patient and the therapist. In addition, we will train them to use our devices in an optimal way. On the research side, we will work with a number of researchers to validate the clinical protocols through scientific publications. 

What is your favorite game on the REAtouch?

I like the REAcooking game because of its graphic and functional aspects for the patient. Moreover, I like cooking a lot and I am very greedy!

Proven effectiveness of early Robotic Assisted Therapy for upper limb rehabilitation after stroke

Workspace of REAplan

Study provides further evidence for the effectiveness of robot-assisted therapy in stroke upper limb rehabilitation

Robot-assisted therapy (RAT) is of significant interest in early rehabilitation, when neuroplasticity is high but motor control is frequently insufficient for patients to independently practice functional movements. Many patients with stroke experience persistent upper limb (UL) impairments. This single-blind, randomized, controlled trial[i] explored the impact of partially substituting conventional therapy (CT) with RAT on the three International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) domains.

MethodsWorkspace of REAplan

Forty-five patients with acute stroke were randomized to receive dose-matched interventions over nine weeks. The first received conventional therapy (CT). In the second group, four CT sessions per week (25%) were substituted by RAT using our REAplan® end-effector robot to perform a game moving the paretic hand along a trajectory, with the robot assisting as needed.

Assessments were performed by the same blinded evaluator at inclusion (T0), after the intervention (TI), and at six months after stroke (T2). They were:

  • Upper limb motor impairments – FMA-UE (motor control) and box and block test (BBT –gross manual dexterity)
  • Activity limitations – Wolf Motor Function Test (S-WMFT), and Abilhand and Activlim questionnaires
  • Social participation – subscore of the Stroke Impact Scale (SISsb).

Results

Main findings were:

  • The RAT group performed a mean (SD) of 520 (437) movements per session.
  • The RAT group showed significantly greater improvement in gross manual dexterity than CT group (P = 0.02). Between T0 and T2, BBT scores improved from a mean of 3.0 (8.3) to 12.7 (17.3) blocks in RAT, but only from 3.8 (7.5) to 5.1 (9.8) blocks in the CT group.
  • UL motor activity improved more in the RAT than CT group (P= 0.02). Between T0 and T2, the S-WFMT score improved from a mean of 16% (21.4) to 39% (36.6) in RAT, but from 19% (23.6) to just 25% (33.1) in the CT group.
  • FMA-UE results showed a positive trend in favor of the RAT group (P = 0.058)
  • Social participation scores also improved significantly more in the RAT group (P = 0.01). Between T0 and T2, SISsb improved from a mean of 36% (21.4) to 59% (24.1) in the RAT group, but only from 45% (26.6) to 47% (31.5) in the CT group.

Discussion and conclusion

This study supports evidence that using RAT to partially substitute CT in the early rehabilitation phase is at least as effective, or even better, at improving UL and ADL function than CT alone. This study was also the first to assess the ICF social participation domain. The authors suggest greater improvements can be explained by the effect of the robotic device itself, which allows clinicians to deliver therapy using key motor recovery factors including high intensity and repetitive, task-oriented movement training.

Moreover, RAT’s long-term effectiveness is unrelated to post-rehabilitation lifestyle, with similar patient numbers from both groups returning either home or to a nursing home. The authors suggest their results should be confirmed in future multicentre studies involving larger participant numbers.

[i] Dehem S, et al. Effectiveness of upper-limb robotic-assisted therapy in the early rehabilitation phase after stroke: A single-blind, randomised, controlled trial. Ann Phys Rehabil Med (2019).

Read the full paper