Transcutaneous FES-induced pain maps on post-stroke upper limb

Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) is a technique to artificially stimulate motor nerves in order to restore motor/sensory functions for assistive and therapeutic applications. This preliminary study attempts to detect differences in the perception of transcutaneous FES in upper limbs. Three chronic stroke survivors participated in the study. Multi-field electrodes were used to selectively activate the targeted areas over the wrist-finger flexors, wrist-finger extensors, biceps, and triceps muscles. Results showed no significant correlation between the applied current and pain ratings. Differences in the rating of pain in different fields over the four targeted areas were observed. The initial results suggest that here is a common pattern to most subjects for each area of the upper limb.