Wearable EMG-FES System to Help Stroke Recovery and Find Biological Markers
Official title: Wearable EMG-FES System for Stroke Rehabilitation and Biomarker Development
Funded at Ohio State University · NIH-11336604 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A wearable sleeve that uses your own muscle signals to help arm movement after stroke, while researchers look for biological clues that track recovery.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Ohio State University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Columbus, UNITED STATES) |
| Project start | September 1, 2026 |
| Project end | August 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $791,792 |
| NIH project number | 1R61NS149204-01 |
| Project ID | NIH-11336604 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Adults 21+ years old who have suffered a stroke and have residual arm weakness are eligible.
✕Less likely to help
Patients with severe impairments or contraindications to electrical stimulation may not benefit.
What this research studies
This project tests a sleeve-style device that wires to your arm to detect intent and deliver electrical stimulation to your muscles during rehabilitation after stroke. By aligning stimulation with natural muscle signals, the sleeve aims to boost motor recovery and record biomarkers that reflect progress. The study design includes a two-arm randomized setup to compare the NeuroLife Sleeve-assisted therapy against standard care, with adults 21 and older who have had a stroke. Researchers from Ohio State University, Battelle, and UT Dallas will analyze how well this approach improves arm function and what biomarkers correlate with improvements.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, patients could regain more arm movement after stroke and clinicians could monitor recovery through biomarkers.
How similar studies have gone: Previous work shows promise for EMG-driven FES systems, but the specific sleeve design and integrated biomarkers are novel.
Where this research is happening
-
Ohio State University
Columbus, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Wengerd, Lauren R. — Ohio State University
- Study coordinator: Wengerd, Lauren R.
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
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Understanding how vagus nerve stimulation helps stroke recovery to guide better treatments
This NIH grant uses computer models to figure out how brief, task-timed vagus nerve stimulation affects the brain after stroke and helps movement recovery.
-
Calcium imaging guides deep brain stimulation to boost chronic stroke recovery in a rat model
A research team is testing how customizing deep brain stimulation parameters in rats with stroke can improve long-term motor recovery, with the goal of guiding future patient treatments.
-
Targeting synapse turnover to boost stroke recovery
Aims to find ways to shape brain rewiring after stroke by guiding how synapses grow, with the goal of helping adults recover upper-limb function.
-
Noradrenergic VNS to boost stroke rehab outcomes
A patient-oriented look at a therapy that combines brief vagus nerve stimulation with physical rehab to help people recover arm movement after a stroke.
-
How rehab changes the brain after stroke
This project will look at how rehabilitation training changes brain activity and connections after stroke to help people regain movement.
-
Prism adaptation for right-brain stroke rehabilitation
A personalized approach using prism adaptation to help people with spatial neglect after a right-hemisphere stroke improve everyday functioning.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.