Functional control of the hand in tetraplegics based on residual synergistic EMG activity

A microprocessor controlled device (MeCFES) was used for the investigation of the possibility of restoring hand function in C5 tetraplegics with paral ysis of the hand. To date, 3 tetraplegics have been testing the system. The myoelectric signals from wrist extension were recorded and used as control signals for functional electrical stimulation (FES) of thumb adduction/fle xion. The results have shown that the device can improve the hand function of tetraplegics. In this part of the work, a hand function test was designe d and used to assess the results.