Quality of Grasping and the Role of Haptics in a 3D Immersive Virtual Reality Environment in Individuals With XXXX .

@entity1 @entity64 @entity4270
UNASSIGNED: Reaching and grasping parameters with and without haptic feedback were characterized in @entity1 with @entity64 . Twelve (67    10yrs) individuals with @entity64 and arm/hand paresis (Fugl-Meyer Assessment-Arm: >=  46/66 pts) participated. Three dimensional (3D) temporal and spatial kinematics of reaching and grasping movements to 3 objects (can: cylindrical grasp; screwdriver: power grasp; pen: precision grasp) in a @entity4270 ( @entity4270 ) with and without additional haptic feedback and a 3D virtual environment (VE) with haptic feedback were recorded. @entity1 reached, grasped and transported physical and virtual objects using similar movement strategies in all conditions. Reaches made in VE were less smooth and slower compared to the @entity4270 . Arm and trunk kinematics were similar in both environments and glove conditions. For grasping, @entity64 subjects preserved aperture scaling to object size but used wider hand apertures with longer delays between times to maximal reaching velocity and maximal grasping aperture. Wearing the glove decreased reaching velocity. Our results in a small group of subjects suggest that providing haptic information in the VE did not affect the validity of reaching and grasping movement. Small disparities in movement parameters between environments may be due to differences in perception of object distance in VE. Reach-to-grasp kinematics to smaller objects may be improved by better 3D rendering. Comparable kinematics between environments and conditions is encouraging for the incorporation of high quality VEs in rehabilitation programs aimed at improving upper limb recovery.
