Tutor System Joins Rehabilitation for Elderly Patients

As appeared in Agence France-Presse, on January 1, 2012
Singaporean retiree Soon Eng Sam, 70, suffered a stroke that paralysed the left side of his body six months ago.
While bedridden for three months, he has regained some of his limb functions on the affected side through the use of conventional physical therapy but now hopes to hasten his recovery with the help of new ”gadgets” designed to make rehabilitation fun. Among these ”gadgets” are the TUTORS. The HANDTUTOR, ARMTUTOR, LEGTUTOR and 3DTUTOR are leading newly developed devices to strengthen the affected limbs and joints of patients suffering from stroke, head injuries, spinal cord injuries, Parkinson’s disease, Cerebral Palsy, Multiple Sclerosis, Radial and Ulnar nerve injuries and other disabilities.
“This therapy is not so boring, not so painful as physical therapy, because the machine is assisting me to move my arm up and down and laterally” said Soon Eng Sam.
One of the therapists had to tell Soon to slow down as the former civil servant enthusiastically used his left hand to catch virtual water droplets with a teacup on a colour monitor.
The Centre for Advanced Rehabilitation Therapeutics (CART) in Singapore, where some of this therapy takes place, is described by its administrators as the most advanced facility of its kind in Asia.
Medical authorities are deploying the latest technology as fast-greying Singapore prepares for a “silver tsunami” of elderly people because of longer life spans and low birth rates.
Some of these devices allow therapists to use ”smart technology” to empower clients to take control over their recovery as well as to use therapy time more efficiently.
The TUTOR rehabilitation software uses special rehabilitation games to set a new target for this movement in terms of the patients ability to move their limb. The devices then measure the limb movement and give feedback on the success of the patient in trying to gain this new movement objective. In this way the patient is given movement feedback that allows him to understand which effort is more successful in allowing him to move his affected limb again. In this way the TUTOR system provides exercises that are challenging and motivating and allows for repetitive and intensive exercise practice.
Any patients with balance deficits and decreased arm function will also benefit from these games.
Younger patients as well as accident victims and those with congenital motor problems, also benefit from this enhanced physical therapy.
The TUTORS have one of the most cost effective physical rehabilitation systems.
The TUTORS are now part of the rehabilitation program of leading U.S. German, Italian, French, UK and other foreign hospitals. See WWW.HANDTUTOR.CO