Kinect in research

The number of clinical studies and articles reporting benefits of using Microsoft's Kinect in rehabilitation, both in a clinical and home environment, are growing.

Research has been done about the reliability of the sensor, that is, how precise the Kinect is in its measurement of the motions of the human body, and it has been found to be accurate enough to be used in a clinical context. (One should remember that the new Kinect for Xbox One sensor have been greatly improved in this aspect compared to the older Kinect for Xbox 360.)

The Kinect sensor can be used both as an evaluation tool such as in examining how well a patient can perform a certain movement. As such a tool, it can be used in online treatment and communication between patient and the health care provider (with new terms, e-health, telerehabilitation or telemedicine), thus making it convenient for the patient who then doesn't always need to visit the clinic.

Above all, the Kinect can be used in a number of fun and engaging games and apps to assist as a tool for rehabilitation or physical and cognitive exercise and activation.

Kinect can be useful for any person at any age, but maybe especially for senior citizens or for people suffering from complications after stroke or cerebral palsy or other conditions with reduced mobility.

One obvious reason for using motion games in rehabilitation or for general exercise (which also is mentioned in several reports) is that for many it may be easier to find motivation for playing a game than to carry out a regular exercise program, whether it be younger persons with cerebral palsy or elderly people in a nursing home that are playing.

Generally, it would be desirable that motion games that aims to be used in rehabilitation or for people with special needs and diagnoses, takes some considerations in their design to be adapted and user-friendly for those particular groups (read more).

Down below are some excerpts from some collected articles from research on how to use the Kinect sensor. (Note, the samples include both reports about the older Kinect for Xbox 360 as well as Kinect for Xbox One, the later one has been around since 2014.)

* Kinect for Xbox One, also called Kinect V2, essentially the same as Kinect for Windows V2.

Brain Inj. 2016 Mar 30:1-9. [Epub ahead of print]

Virtual reality gaming in the rehabilitation of the upper extremities post-stroke.

Yates M, Kelemen A, Sik Lanyi C.

Quotes from Abstract: "The literature supports the use of virtual reality gaming rehab therapy as equivalent to traditional therapies or as successful augmentation to those therapies."

Cien Saude Colet. 2016 Apr;21(4):1033-41. doi: 10.1590/1413-81232015214.11812015.

[Perception of the elderly regarding participation inexergaming-based exercise: a qualitative study]

[Article in Portuguese]

Meneghini V, Barbosa AR, Mello AL, Bonetti A, Guimarães AV.

Quotes from Abstract: "Participants reported psychological benefits (self-esteem, concentration, mood, reasoning, memory and well-being), physical benefits (agility and physical conditions) and social interaction (exchange of experiences, friendship and competitiveness)."

J Neuroeng Rehabil. 2014; 11: 108.

Systematic review of Kinect applications in elderly care and stroke rehabilitation

David Webster and Ozkan Celik

Quotes from article: "a review of the most current avenues of research into Kinect-based elderly care and stroke rehabilitation systems to provide an overview of the state of the art, limitations, and issues of concern as well as suggestions for future work in this direction."

Assist Technol. 2016 Apr 8. [Epub ahead of print]

Navigation of a Virtual Exercise Environment with Microsoft Kinect by People Post-stroke or with Cerebral Palsy.

Pool SM, Hoyle JM, Malone LA, Cooper L, Bickel CS, McGwin G, Rimmer JH, Eberhardt AW.

Quotes from abstract: ""The "most viable" gestures were defined as those with average success rates of 90% or higher and perception of difficulty ranging between easy to very easy. For those with CP, hand raises, hand extensions, and head nod gestures were found to be most viable. For those post-stroke, the most viable gestures were torso twists, head nods, as well as hand raises and hand extensions using the less impaired hand. ... This study demonstrated that Kinect may be useful for persons with mobility impairments to interface with virtual exercise environments, but the effectiveness of the various gestures depends upon the disability of the user."

Gait Posture. 2015 Jul;42(2):210-3. doi: 10.1016/j.gaitpost.2015.03.005. Epub 2015 Apr 20.

Reliability and concurrent validity of the Microsoft Xbox One Kinect for assessment of standing balance and postural control.

Clark RA1, Pua YH2, Oliveira CC3, Bower KJ3, Thilarajah S4, McGaw R3, Hasanki K3, Mentiplay BF3.

Quotes from article: " In conclusion, the Kinect V2 has the potential to be used as a reliable and valid tool for the assessment of some aspects of balance performance."

J Neuroeng Rehabil. 2015 Aug 2;12:63. doi: 10.1186/s12984-015-0057-x.

Clinical feasibility of interactive motion-controlled games for stroke rehabilitation.

Bower KJ1,2,3, Louie J4, Landesrocha Y5, Seedy P6, Gorelik A7, Bernhardt J8.

Quotes from article: "CONCLUSIONS: A post-stroke intervention using interactive motion-controlled games shows promise as a feasible and potentially effective treatment approach."

Sheng Wu Yi Xue Gong Cheng Xue Za Zhi. 2015 Jun;32(3):563-8.

Research and Development of A Kinect Based Virtual System for Upper Limb Rehabilitation.

[Article in Chinese]

Ding W, Zheng Y, Su Y, Li X, Wei X.

Quotes from abstract: "According to the results of short questionnaires and the evaluation results of patients' rehabilitation training, the system compared with traditional rehabilitation can record and analyze the training data, which is useful to make rehabilitation plans. More entertainment and lower cost will increase patients' motivation, which helps to increase the rehabilitation effectiveness. "

Aging Clin Exp Res. 2015 Sep 19. [Epub ahead of print]

Xbox Kinect training to improve clinical measures of balance in older adults: a pilot study.

Bieryla KA1.

Quotes from article: " CONCLUSION: A training program using the Kinect with commercially available games was feasible with old adults. Kinect training may be an inexpensive way for old adults to receive helpful feedback encouraging them to continue with balance training program in their home."

Res Dev Disabil. 2013 Nov;34(11):3654-9. doi: 10.1016/j.ridd.2013.08.021. Epub 2013 Sep 4.

A Kinect-based upper limb rehabilitation system to assist people with cerebral palsy.

Chang YJ, Han WY, Tsai YC.

Quotes from abstract: "Data showed that the two participants significantly increased their motivation for upper limb rehabilitation, thus improving exercise performance during the intervention phases."

BBC News - Playing card games aids stroke recovery http://www.bbc.com/news/health-36638178

reports from Lancet Neurology. Quotes from BBC article: "The scientists found it improved patients' motor skills.

They told the Lancet Neurology that the type of task used for motor rehabilitation might be less relevant, as long as it is intensive, repetitive and gets the hands and arms moving. Playing Jenga, bingo or a games consol like Wii worked equally well. "

NASA uses Kinect 2 in robot maneuvering

To Kinect games

To Kinect for rehabilitation