Data Shows Duration of Physical Therapy Needed for Recovery Varies Widely
08/19/2024
By Karen Angelo
One unexpected result of the pandemic is that it opened the door for physical therapy services to be delivered remotely. Covered by Medicare since 2022, remote therapeutic monitoring leverages digital health tools such as gaming to track physical activity, range of motion, strength and other metrics in real time.
“Using digital tools to help patients recover is a big win for people who find it difficult to travel to appointments or who may not have clinics nearby,” says Assoc. Prof. Lynne Gauthier of the Physical Therapy and Kinesiology Department. “When physical and occupational therapists integrate remote gaming into treatment, they are improving access to high-quality care.”
Gauthier has studied how playing rehabilitation video games at home between in-person sessions with a physical or occupational therapist improves outcomes for patients recovering from a stroke or those with chronic conditions. The rehabilitation gaming platform called RxGames, which Gauthier helped to develop, uses cellphone cameras to track body movement and sends the data back to the therapist.
In a study published in the February issue of the journal Stroke, Gauthier found that “one-size-fits-all” insurance reimbursement is not an evidence-based policy.
Gauthier analyzed movement data collected from 81 people who engaged in a game-based home exercise program at least six months after a stroke. In less than five hours, half of the group made meaningful gains in the speed and distance in which they could move their paretic (partially paralyzed) arm. The other half improved slowly, needing many more hours of treatment than the 10 hours covered by insurance.
“Digital tools have shown first-ever evidence that the duration of treatment needed to maximize recovery varies widely per person,” says Gauthier.
The findings highlight the benefits of using digital therapies to personalize treatment and to supplement in-person care for patients with slower recovery progress and chronic conditions.
“Reimbursement policy needs to continue to evolve to match the evidence,” says Gauthier.
How Remote Monitoring Works
After assessing a patient’s needs, a physical or occupational therapist may decide to integrate a digital health tool into treatment. The patient then downloads the application to his or her phone.
Through the AI-powered gaming application, the phone’s camera analyzes where the body’s joints are located and captures movement data while the patient is engaging with the exercise app at home. The therapist receives the data in real time and can make adjustments to treatment based on the patient’s progress.
“This is about delivering data-driven personalized care,” says Gauthier. “Therapists know when a patient plateaus or when they can benefit from more of an exercise. This level of customized care can lead to better outcomes and faster recovery times.”