ArmCoach4Stroke

2020

A stroke is a common and disabling disorder that often affects arm activities. After stroke intensive arm therapy is essential for gaining and retaining functional improvements.  However, due to high costs, therapist shortages, patient burden, and adherence issues, intensive arm treatment is underutilized and will become increasingly challenging in the future. Therefore, there is an urgent need for sustainable, technology-supported, and motivating home-based treatment, with therapist supervision only when necessary.

The Focus
The multidisciplinary ArmCoach4Stroke project aims to develop and evaluate an interactive and innovative therapy aid using movement sensors to enhance daily arm use and exercise at home. This system provides personalized feedback to patients and therapists based on objective data, promoting tailored therapy outside clinical settings.

The Research
The ArmCoach4Stroke system consists of two sensor/feedback wrist units, additional exercise sensors, and a tablet application for real-time performance monitoring and therapist-defined exercises. The system is easy to use and patient friendly. Patients receive vibrotactile feedback to encourage arm usage (based on pre-set targets), while exercise exercise performance is quantified in quantity (e.g. numbers of repetitions) and quality metrics (e.g. speed). The summary data from daily activities and exercises are transmitted for remote monitoring, facilitating direct patient-therapist interaction and improving rehabilitation outcomes.

By collaborating with patients, therapists and other (end)users, ArmCoach4Stroke aims to optimize implementation in healthcare, filling a crucial gap in intensive arm therapy for stroke survivors and enhancing their daily function and quality of life. ArmCoach4Stroke makes rehabilitation care more efficient and sustainable for this vulnerable and growing group.

Origin
This project is funded within the Innovative Medical Devices Initiative (IMDI) program 'Heart for Sustainable Care'. The focus of this program is the development of medical technology for the earlier detection, monitoring, and better treatment of cardiovascular diseases to ensure accessible healthcare and sufficient staffing. The program has been developed en funded by the Dutch Heart Foundation, ZonMw and NWO, who collaborate within the Dutch CardioVascular Alliance.

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Funded

Contact person:

Dr. J.B.J. Bussmann

Principal investigators

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COVID@Heart

2020
About 10% of the COVID-19 affected patients develop critical illness with a high mortality rate. This critical illness appears to be strongly linked with cardiovascular disease, as the prevalence of cardiovascular comorbidities and risk factors (such as diabetes and obesity) are often found among hospitalized COVID-19 patients. The consortium COVID@Heart believes that mitigating this cardiovascular burden of Covid-19 should start early, while patients are (still) outside the hospital. The Research COVID@Heart has three core activities: Develop a tool to identify high-risk cardiovascular patients with COVID-19 in a home environment, before the critical illness emerges. This tool will allow general practitioners to better notify high-risk patients, monitor them more closely (e.g. by using home saturation measurements), prescribe preventive cardiovascular medication earlier ('moon shot') and refer them to a hospital promptly when needed. Create a diagnostic tool to improve early differentiation between COVID-19 and a myocardial infarction, addressing the challenge of overlapping symptoms faced by general practitioners. Design a questionnaire supplemented by select biomarkers and blood tests to enhance the detection of cardiovascular disease in COVID-19 survivors experiencing prolonged symptoms of fatigue and shortness of breath, as these symptoms are potentially linked to accelerated subclinical cardiovascular disease. Origin Accurate information on how cardiovascular patients fared while still at home is lacking. This information is crucial to prevent hospital admissions. Therefore, COVID@HEART focuses on people who are not hospitalized but are at home and treated by their general practitioners. The Dutch Heart Foundation supports and funds this research into the best treatment for cardiovascular patients with a coronavirus infection.  
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GENIUS II

2018
The GENIUS II (Generating Evidence-Based Pharmaceutical Targets and Drugs for Atherosclerosis) consortium is dedicated to studying atherosclerosis, the primary pathological condition underlying cardiovascular diseases. The consortium aims to translate identified druggable targets for atherosclerosis intervention into clinical applications. Gender specificity is a key consideration in all our studies. Our consortium's talent program is structured to provide young researchers with insights into the opportunities and challenges of cardiovascular drug development. The Research GENIUS II research integrates knowledge of dyslipidemia and associated immune responses. Our work is organized into distinct work packages that correspond to the logical steps in drug development. Each selected target from GENIUS I is strategically incorporated into this framework. Our investigations encompass in vitro and in vivo analyses to understand mechanisms, druggability, and effects on atherosclerosis. In addition to building upon GENIUS I drug targets and leads, we leverage recent innovative advancements to identify new druggable targets within male and female atherosclerotic lesions, as well as in circulating cells. State-of-the-art molecular biology techniques, including single cell sequencing and immunophenotyping, are actively employed to dissect immunometabolic processes within atherosclerotic plaques and patients. These studies will enable us to monitor the presence of drug targets at disease sites, expediting drug design and potentially identifying gender-specific biomarkers to aid disease progression monitoring and diagnosis. Subsequent studies involve testing the efficacy of small molecules, monoclonal antibodies, and siRNA against pre-selected targets from GENIUS I. We have identified small molecules and monoclonal antibodies for five targets, which will undergo toxicity and proof-of-pharmacology studies to progress towards drug development for cardiovascular patients. We have also identified three drugs affecting primary targets from GENIUS I and are assessing their potential to reduce atherosclerotic parameters in First-In-Human clinical trials. Origin This consortium was funded through the Impulse Grant program by the Dutch Heart Foundation. The GENIUS II consortium builds on the most promising targets identified in the GENIUS I consortium, with the goal of advancing these targets towards clinical application.
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