DEVELOPMENT AND EVALUATION OF VIRTUAL REALITY EXERGAMES FOR UPPER LIMB AMPUTEE REHABILITATION

Abstract

Upper limb amputees face significant challenges in adapting to prosthetic limbs, leading to suboptimal rehabilitation outcomes and decreased quality of life. Conventional rehabilitation methods often lack engagement and fail to address the multifaceted difficulties associated with prosthetic use. Limited access to prosthetics, difficulty in adapting to new devices, and inadequate training opportunities further compound the problem. This thesis presents the development and evaluation of a tailored Virtual Reality (VR) rehabilitation system for upper limb amputees. Immersive VR environments were integrated with Electromyography (EMG) for interpreting muscle signals, haptic feedback to enhance the sense of realism, and 3D pose estimation for precise performance assessment through kinematics analysis. User evaluation revealed positive user satisfaction(ratings: 3.8 to 4.5 on a 5-point Likert Scale). Quantitative analysis of the box and block test scores across 10 healthy participants for the motor skills assessment revealed a strong correlation (r = 0.99, P < 0.001) between training sessions and the evaluation scores. There was no statistically significant difference observed when comparing the range of motion during the virtual box and block test with normative data. In conclusion, this VR rehabilitation system proved potential in improving motor skills and user engagement for upper limb amputees, potentially enhancing rehabilitation outcomes and quality of life.