Training gloves for inducing brain damaged children to actively participate in rehabilitation training

The hand motor functions of brain damaged children are limited because of high muscle tension. These children cannot easily extend or flex their fingers because of the muscle tension. There is currently little equipment developed for young patients. The aim of this study is to design gloves based on child's psychology to attract the children to actively participate in rehabilitation training. The gloves attract the children's attention by a series of LEDs that turn on or off as well as music playing or stopping. The gloves have been used by brain damaged children in the China Rehabilitation Research Center with results showing that the median frequencies of affected thenar and extensor proprius longus increase, which indicates that the muscle endurance is improved. The root-mean-square and average amplitude of the thenar and extensor proprius longus decrease, suggesting that the muscle tension decreases and the ability to control their fingers motion improves. The results verify the effectiveness of these gloves with brain damaged children.