Functional Electrical Rehabilitation: Technological Restoration After Spinal Cord Injury

The tremendous development over the past decade of functional electrical rehabilitation, a treatment modality that greatly differs from conventional rehabilitation therapy, is presented in this monograph. It shows how paralyzed muscle can be stimulated to perform in the physical reconditioning of an afflicted person. The historical evolution of this innovative approach to spinal cord injury is included. The book is made up of four major sections. The first on theory and background explores feedback control of paralyzed muscle movement and applications of motor and sensory feedback control to extremity prosthesis. The second on stationary exercise rehabilitation discusses the acute effects of both the leg exercise and exercise bicycle systems, as well as chronic exercise effects. The third section on ambulatory exercise rehabilitation examines paraplegic and quadriplegic walking systems and considers cardiopulmonary and physiological effects. The fourth and final section discusses the prescription of functional electrical rehabilitation and patient evaluation.