Welcome! I am Dr. Sam Darvishi, the founder of RehabSwift. With a research journey that began in 2006, my colleagues and I have been dedicated to studying restorative brain-computer interfaces at prestigious institutions such as The University of Technology Sydney and The University of Adelaide in Australia, as well as The University of Tubingen in Germany. The culmination of our extensive research efforts led to the establishment of RehabSwift as a company in 2018.
The research endeavor involved conducting numerous clinical trials, each with its specific parameters and outcomes. Below, you will find a comprehensive list of these trials along with the corresponding publications that emerged from them.
THE IMPACT OF FEEDBACK MODALITIES ON BRAIN ACTIVITY
The primary objective of our research was to investigate the optimal feedback modality for facilitating hand movement re-learning.
To address this question, we conducted a series of clinical trials involving ten individuals without motor impairments. Each participant attended two sessions. During one session, they utilised a moving cursor to target objects on a screen by intending to move their hand. In the other session, they experienced the sensation and visual perception of their hand movement through a bionic hand, as a reward for their intention to move.
By analysing the participants’ brain dynamics during neurofeedback sessions, we observed that the activation of the brain was significantly stronger when the intention to move was rewarded through both visual and tactile feedback provided by the bionic hand, compared to when they solely received visual feedback on the screen.
Link to the published paper: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnins.2017.00060/full
THE IMPACT OF FEEDBACK DELAY ON NEUROFEEDBACK TRAINING
Following the identification of the optimal feedback modality, as mentioned earlier, we investigated the influence of feedback delay on the effectiveness of neurofeedback training.
To examine this factor, we recruited ten individuals without motor impairments to participate in multiple training sessions. During these sessions, the participants engaged in neurofeedback training while experiencing varying delays between their intention to move their hand and the subsequent receipt of hand movement feedback via a bionic hand.
The results of the clinical trials revealed that individuals who exhibit faster information processing abilities derived greater benefits from shorter delays. Conversely, participants with slower information processing capabilities found themselves overwhelmed by fast feedback, indicating that longer delays were more advantageous for them.
Link to the published paper: https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/8529255
PILOT STUDY TO VALIDATE THE FEASIBILITY
By integrating the results obtained from the aforementioned studies, we conducted a proof-of-concept investigation to assess the effectiveness of our groundbreaking brain-computer interface. In this study, we invited a 65-year-old individual who had suffered a stroke 3.5 years prior to participating.
Through a series of ten neurofeedback training sessions conducted over a two-week period, we were able to achieve substantial improvements in the participant’s hand movement capabilities. This outcome serves as a promising validation of the potential and viability of our innovative approach.
Link to the published paper: https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rsos.170660
MULTI-PARTICIPANT STUDY
Building upon the highly encouraging outcomes observed in our previous proof-of-concept study, we proceeded to conduct follow-up clinical trials aimed at examining the generalizability of the muscle re-education benefits to a broader population. To accomplish this, we established a collaborative effort with researchers from the University of Adelaide and Central Adelaide Local Health Network, enlisting the participation of 12 stroke survivors.
The study, which concluded in September 2021, yielded exceedingly promising primary results. Currently, the research findings are undergoing further analysis, and we have plans to publish them in a prestigious clinical journal, reinforcing the credibility and significance of our study.
receiving real-time prompts from the software to extend the robotic fingers
extending the fingers of the user which are enmeshed with the robotic hand
