Symposium on Robotics in Rehabilitation

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The objective of this application is to seek support for a Symposium on Robotics in Rehabilitation the applicants intend to organize as part of the XVIIth Congress of the International Society of Electrophysiology and Kinesiology (ISEK) that will be held in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada from June 18 to June 21, 2008. The rationale underlying the organization of the symposium is the need for bringing together biomedical engineers and clinicians to discuss this important emerging area of clinical and research interest. Dr. Joe Hidler will open the symposium with a keynote lecture that will be given in a plenary session. Dr. Hidler was chosen to introduce the symposium because his work exemplifies the relevance of merging technical and clinical expertise in an interdisciplinary environment. This issue will be emphasized in the symposium as a key element to deliver the best care possible to patients with mobility-limiting conditions who could benefit from rehabilitation interventions that leverage on robotics. The one-hour lecture given by Dr. Hidler will be followed by three lectures of 30 min each that will be given by Dr. Neville Hogan (MIT), Dr. Patricia Winchester (The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center), and Dr. Joel Stein (Harvard Medical School). These individuals represent the three "communities" the symposium intends to target, i.e. biomedical engineers, physical therapists, and physiatrists. They also represent the different types of expertise seen as necessary to develop effective rehabilitation interventions that rely on advances in robotic technology and solid clinical knowledge. The presentations will be published in a special issue of the Journal of NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation http://www.jneuroengrehab.com, a peer-reviewed open-access journal published by BioMed Central http://www.biomedcentral.com that can be accessed via PubMed and PubMed Central. Dr. Hidler will serve as guest-editor for this special issue. During the past decade, the field of physical medicine and rehabilitation has witnessed a growing interest for the clinical use of robotic systems in physical therapy. Robotic systems allow clinicians to increase the duration, intensity and specificity of treatment compared to traditional physical therapy. These factors have the potential to result in a faster and greater level of recovery of functional capability thus leading to an improvement of patient's level of independence and quality of life.