Home-based technologies for stroke rehabilitation: A systematic review

Background: Many forms of home-based technology targeting stroke rehabilitation have been devised, and a number of human factors are important to their application, suggesting the need to examine this information in a comprehensive review.

Objective: The systematic review aims to synthesize the current knowledge of technologies and human factors in home-based technologies for stroke rehabilitation.

Methods: We conducted a systematic literature search in three electronic databases (IEEE, ACM, PubMed), including secondary citations from the literature search. We included articles that used technological means to help stroke patients conduct rehabilitation at home, reported empirical studies that evaluated the technologies with patients in the home environment, and were published in English. Three authors independently conducted the content analysis of searched articles using a list of interactively defined factors.

Results: The search yielded 832 potentially relevant articles, leading to 31 articles that were included for in-depth analysis. The types of technology of reviewed articles included games, telerehabilitation, robotic devices, virtual reality devices, sensors, and tablets. We present the merits and limitations of each type of technology. We then derive two main human factors in designing home-based technologies for stroke rehabilitation: designing for engagement (including external and internal motivation) and designing for the home environment (including understanding the social context, practical challenges, and technical proficiency).

Conclusion: This systematic review presents an overview of key technologies and human factors for designing home-based technologies for stroke rehabilitation.