Eyegaze Systems for Spinal Cord Injury: A Feasibility Study

September 12, 2013 updated by: Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust

A Longitudinal Clinical Feasibility Study to Evaluate the Psychological and Functional Effects of Using the Tobii™ Eyegaze System by Inpatients With Tetraplegia

As technologies are advancing quickly in the healthcare setting, new solutions have become available helping disable people to enhance their ability to communicate. One of these advances is the introduction of the 'eye gaze system'. Through processing eye movements, this device allows a person to write, speak, use the Internet and even control systems in the home or office. In the currently proposed study we aim to evaluate the psychological and functional effects of using the Tobii™ Eyegaze System by inpatients with tetraplegia who are unable to use arms and legs and sometimes are not able to talk because of an impaired respiratory function.

Volunteering inpatients will be recruited at the National Spinal Injuries Centre. Volunteers will be instructed and trained to use the Tobii™ Eyegaze System. The number of sessions required to successfully master the device depends on the learning curve of the patient. The progress will be documented accordingly. After successful completion of the training and supervised use, the inpatients will be offered the Tobii™ Eyegaze System for unsupervised use, 4 hours a week, for the following 2 months. It is hypothesised that using the Tobii™ Eyegaze System by inpatients with tetraplegia results in improved disability perception and independence scores. For the current feasibility study 12 participants will be recruited and assessed for 'Appraisal of Disability', 'Mood', 'Assistive Technology perception' and 'eyeskills' to instruct the computer system. Positive study outcomes will encourage future studies of the role of the Tobii™ Eyegaze System in both a rehabilitation and home environment.

Study Overview

Status

Unknown

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Volunteering inpatients will be recruited at the National Spinal Injuries Centre. Volunteers will be instructed and trained to use the Tobii™ Eyegaze System. The number of sessions required to successfully master the device depends on the learning curve of the patient. The progress will be documented accordingly. After successful completion of the training and supervised use, the inpatients will be offered the Tobii™ Eyegaze System for unsupervised use, 4 hours a week, for the following 2 months. It is hypothesised that using the Tobii™ Eyegaze System by inpatients with tetraplegia results in improved disability perception and independence scores. For the current feasibility study 12 participants will be recruited and assessed for 'Appraisal of Disability', 'Mood', 'Assistive Technology perception' and 'eyeskills' to instruct the computer system. Positive study outcomes will encourage future studies of the role of the Tobii™ Eyegaze System in both a rehabilitation and home environment.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Anticipated)

12

Phase

  • Phase 4

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United Kingdom
    • Buckinghamshire
      • Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, United Kingdom, HP21 8AL
        • National Spinal Injuries Centre, Stoke Mandeville Hospital

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

16 years and older (Child, Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Spinal Cord Injury at C7 level or above
  • American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) Impairment Scale (AIS) grade A, B, C or D
  • Age equal or higher than 16 years old
  • Expected to stay least 10 weeks at the National Spinal Injuries Centre

Exclusion Criteria:

  • History of severe neurological injuries other than Spinal Cord Injury (eg. Multiple Sclerosis, Cerebral Palsy, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, Traumatic Brain Injury, Stroke)
  • Planned discharge within 10 weeks time
  • Psychiatric or cognitive conditions that may interfere with the study
  • Patients incapable of providing informed consent

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Supportive Care
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Tobii™ Eyegaze System
Single arm, open label study.
Device: Tobii™ Eyegaze System
Volunteers will be instructed and trained to use the Tobii™ Eyegaze System. The number of sessions required to successfully master the device depends on the learning curve of the patient. The progress will be documented accordingly. After successful completion of the training and supervised use, the inpatients will be offered the Tobii™ Eyegaze System for unsupervised use, 4 hours a week, for the following 2 months.
Other Names:
  • Eyegaze System, Eye-tracking Operation System

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Appraisals of Disability: Primary and Secondary Scale (ADAPSS) Questionnaire
Time Frame: 8 weeks
Change in score between 0 and 8 weeks.
8 weeks

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS)
Time Frame: 8 weeks
Change in score between 0 and 8 weeks.
8 weeks

Other Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Assistive Technology Device Predisposition Assessment© (ATDPA) Questionnaire
Time Frame: 8 weeks
Change in score between 0 and 8 weeks.
8 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

Helpful Links

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

August 1, 2013

Primary Completion (Anticipated)

February 1, 2014

Study Completion (Anticipated)

February 1, 2014

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

July 22, 2013

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

September 12, 2013

First Posted (Estimate)

September 17, 2013

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

September 17, 2013

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

September 12, 2013

Last Verified

September 1, 2013

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 13/EE/0049 (UK NRES)

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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