Soft robotic wearable upper limb exosuits for people with multiple sclerosis: overview and SWOT analysis

Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a chronic disease that highly impacts the sensory, cognitive, and motor abilities of people affected by it. Impairments in the upper-limb limit the ability to perform everyday tasks, thus leading to loss of independency. In this context, a proper rehabilitative intervention should take into account the complexity of the disease and adapt to people with Multiple Sclerosis (PwMS). Wearable robotic systems offer potential solutions to address such challenges. In particular, exosuits hold the potential to gently adapt to the user’s movements while providing assistance in performing a task. This review explores the potential of exosuits in supporting upper-limb function in PwMS, critically examining their benefits and limitations in terms of wearability, user experience, and alignment with MS-specific clinical symptoms. A preliminary SWOT analysis is also presented to identify key Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats associated with the adoption of these technologies, laying the groundwork for future research and development in this field. The findings of this review underscore the need for additional clinical trials specifically involving PwMS to draw robust conclusions on the usability and effectiveness of exosuits; nonetheless, their potential impact remains promising.