abstract: Recently, it was demonstrated that startle-evoked-movements (SEMs) are present during individuated finger movements (index finger abduction), but only following intense training. This demonstrates that changes in motor planning, which occur through training (motor learning - a characteristic which can provide researchers and clinicians with information about overall rehabilitative effectiveness), can be analyzed with SEM. The objective here was to determine if SEM is a sensitive enough tool for differentiating expertise (task solidification) in a common everyday task (typing). If proven to be true, SEM may then be useful during rehabilitation for time-stamping when task-specific expertise has occurred, and possibly even when the sufficient dosage of motor training (although not tested here) has been delivered following impairment. It was hypothesized that SEM would be present for all fingers of an expert population, but no fingers of a non-expert population. A total of 9 expert (75.2 ± 9.8 WPM) and 8 non-expert typists, (41.6 ± 8.2 WPM) with right handed dominance and with no previous neurological or current upper extremity impairment were evaluated. SEM was robustly present (all p < 0.05) in all fingers of the experts (except the middle) and absent in all fingers of non-experts except the little (although less robust). Taken together, these results indicate that SEM is a measurable behavioral indicator of motor learning and that it is sensitive to task expertise, opening it for potential clinical utility. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Biomedical Engineering 2018

Stroke is a leading cause of disability in the world and cognitive impairments post stroke are common. Driving is an occupation of great importance to many individuals and enables participation in society but due to cognition deficits after stroke it can be a difficult task to perform adequately. The aim of this study was to review and map interventions used to improve driving ability after stroke within occupational therapy practice. A literature search was conducted using Arksey and O’Malley's six-stage framework [1], and a search was made in four different databases. Seven articles were found and used for further analysing. Results showed two main categories of interventions. Task-specific training consisting of either simulator-based training or behind the wheel training in real traffic, and training of raw cognitive functions focused on driving related abilities. Both interventions overall showed improvement of driving ability, with task specific training being somewhat superior. Considering the easy implementation possibilities, cognitive training with specific focus on driving skills could be used in current occupational therapy practices. Larger studies might prove task-specific training to be much more superior which can then motivate more simulator-based intervention possibilities. Future studies could also focus on improving self-awareness as a factor.