MotionSleeve

Due to both our aging population, as well as the continued prominence of debilitating diseases and injuries, the number of bedridden patients in our hospitals has constantly increased. Such a drastic and consistent demand for long-term care coupled with the average $1000 daily price tag of accommodating a patient has pressurized doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals/caregivers in their roles in expediting patients' recoveries. A patient's recovery, however, is not solely dictated by the progress of the disease/injury they are treated for. In some cases, a patient's stay is prolonged due to complications which can not only aggravate their pre-existing condition(s), but serve as a standalone problem warranting medical attention. Prevalent complications such as bedsores/ulcers, embolisms, atrophy, and the countless physiological changes which accompany immobilization are a natural and direct result of an inpatient's long-term stay at a hospital. In addressing these anticipated health concerns, one of the advised duties of a caregiver is to prescribe range-of-motion (ROM) exercises for the patient to perform on a regular basis. According to numerous scholarly publications- including a report from Johns Hopkins Hospital citing a 17% reduction in ICU length of stays attributed specifically to the implementation of an early ROM-oriented rehabilitation program- ROM exercises are effective at precluding the aforementioned complications. The problem, however, is that aside from the passivity of many healthcare professionals/institutions in enforcing and managing such rehabilitative exercises, it is inherently difficult to monitor and verify the performance/progress of a patient's ROM regimen. This becomes especially important for the ~56,000 Canadian patients in hospitals with dementia who are likely unable to self-monitor their exercises. Such a proven solution to an ever-demanding problem is compromised by its unmanageable nature, which necessitates a method for the disambiguation of a patient's ROM performance history, and for reinforcing ROM on patients on a regular basis. Such a system must be non-intrusive in a hospital environment, require minimal maintenance and operation from healthcare professionals, cause no discomfort to the patient, and offer accurate and clear information that a healthcare worker can use to assess the patient's risk for bedridden complications. The success of such a solution can be measured by the frequency of performed ROM exercises by the patient after its implementation. The intended users of such a method are hospital practitioners- particularly those directly caring for patients- and patients enduring expectedly long-term stays at a hospital. Such a solution may facilitate in or provide the framework for the foundation of an effective and easily manageable ROM-based rehabilitation program since a pre-requisite to prevention is understanding who is at risk.

Inspiration

Volunteering at the hospital. One of our duties was to record patients' ROM activity to determine who was at risk. I knew there had to be a more seamless and reliable way of doing this.

What it does

Measures hinge and ball-and-socket joint angles (elbow/shoulder for arm; knee/hip for leg).

How I built it

Two accelerometers and an MCU. The angle of one accelerometer in relation to the other is used to compute the hinge joint angle. The angle of the upper accelerometer in relation to its calibrated state is used to compute the ball-and-socket joint angles.

Accomplishments that I'm proud of

Reducing computational time of the angle calculations by using the SRAM to host a LUT of the magnitude of two input angles rather than calculating them in real-time.

What's next for MotionSleeve

More compact, comfortable, and lighter design. A better interface. Lower power consumption.

Built With

• atmega1280
• c
• stm32f446re