Article

We developed and evaluated a novel spelling system for patients with
locked-in syndrome: patients with tetraplegia, not able to talk, and only able to
blink their eyes. METHOD: A new communication grid was compared with existing
non-technical communication methods for practical daily use. The means of the
number of decision steps to reach a full sentence were compared testing 10
sentences relevant in daily care. These 10 sentences together encompass all
letters of the alphabet. RESULTS: The new communication grid is organised
alphabetically in 4 columns and 2 main rows, with each row subdivided in three
rows. The first column contains vowels while the other columns contain
consonants. Letters in each column are alphabetically ordered. When spelling a
sentence the conversation partner counts the columns, until the patient indicates
by an upward eye movement that the column contains the intended letter.
Hereafter, the patient indicates by looking straight ahead or by looking down,
whether the intended letter is in the upper or in the lower main row,
respectively. The conversation partner will then read out the letters until the
patient indicates the intended letter. Compared to other spelling systems, this
system requires only vertical eye movement, is easier to memorise, and faster in
use. The comparison of means of decision steps to reach the 10 full sentences for
different communication grids shows that using the new communication grid is
approximately one-third to three times faster than the existing spelling systems
(p = 0.005). CONCLUSION: This new grid is a valuable communication tool,
especially in situations, such as bathing, getting dressed or out of house
activities where no devices are available. Implications for Rehabilitation
Communication with patients with locked-in syndrome is a complicated and
strenuous task. Communication methods, such as the alphabet board and
brain-computer interfaces, are time consuming or too sophisticated to use in
daily life tasks. This communication grid is fast, easy to use and memorise and
requires only vertical eye movement.

Langue : ANGLAIS