Virtual Reality-Based Training to Augment Recovery of Hand Dexterity After Surgery for Degenerative Cervical Myelopathy

Authors

Viprav B. Raju, Medical College of Wisconsin
Roxanne Hauer, Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering - Marquette University - Medical College of Wisconsin
Mohammad Ghassemi, Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering, North Carolina State University – University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Anjishnu Banerjee, Medical College of Wisconsin
Derek Kamper, Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering, North Carolina State University – University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Brian D. Schmit, Marquette UniversityFollow
Aditya Vedantam, Medical College of Wisconsin

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2025

Publisher

Nature Publishing

Source Publication

Scientific Reports

Source ISSN

2045-2322

Original Item ID

DOI: 10.1038/s41598-025-05793-5

Abstract

Degenerative cervical myelopathy (DCM), the leading cause of non-traumatic spinal cord injury, frequently results in impaired hand dexterity. While surgical decompression is the primary treatment, over 40% of patients report residual hand disability after surgery. There are no therapies to restore hand function after surgery for DCM. In this single-arm clinical trial, post-surgical DCM participants (within 12 months after surgery) underwent a 4-week VR training protocol using the Virtual Keyboard system, which promotes practice of finger individuation. Assessments of hand dexterity were performed at baseline (at week 1), post-training (at week 6) and follow-up (at week 10). The primary outcome measure for hand dexterity assessment was the Jebsen-Taylor Hand Function Test (JTHFT). Twenty-two post-surgical DCM participants were included in the final analysis. Statistically significant improvement in the JTHFT was observed at both post-training (p <  0.001, Δ= -15.21s) and follow-up (p <  0.001, Δ= -17.84s), with changes exceeding the Minimal Clinically Important Difference (MCID) at both time points. VR hand training also produced significant, sustained and clinically meaningful improvements in quantitative hand dexterity tests and health-related quality of life. The results of this uncontrolled, single-arm study demonstrate the feasibility and efficacy of targeted neurorehabilitation to augment post-surgical neurological recovery in people with DCM.

Comments

Scientific Reports, Vol. 15 (2025). DOI.

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Recommended Citation

Raju, Viprav B.; Hauer, Roxanne; Ghassemi, Mohammad; Banerjee, Anjishnu; Kamper, Derek; Schmit, Brian D.; and Vedantam, Aditya, "Virtual Reality-Based Training to Augment Recovery of Hand Dexterity After Surgery for Degenerative Cervical Myelopathy" (2025). Biomedical Engineering Faculty Research and Publications. 701.
https://epublications.marquette.edu/bioengin_fac/701