Rehabilitation Robotics: Clinical Effectiveness and Patient Engagement

Medical robotics is entering a new phase of development, one in which technological innovation is increasingly expected to translate into meaningful benefits for patients’ recovery, participation, and overall wellbeing. In rehabilitation, robotic systems are no longer viewed only as tools for assistance or repetition, but as part of broader care pathways that can support motivation, autonomy, continuity, and personalized intervention. At the same time, patient engagement has become a central concern in the design and implementation of effective rehabilitation strategies. Advances in wearable and assistive robotics, soft systems, intelligent sensing, remote care, and digital health integration are creating new opportunities to connect physical rehabilitation with more responsive and patient-centered models of support. This Research Topic aims to explore that growing convergence and to highlight contributions that can shape the next generation of rehabilitation-oriented medical robotics.

This Research Topic seeks to bring together researchers, clinicians, engineers, and innovators working at the intersection of medical robotics, rehabilitation, and patient-centered wellbeing. Its goal is to showcase emerging ideas, validated solutions, and translational perspectives that demonstrate how robotic technologies can do more than assist movement or automate therapeutic tasks. We are especially interested in contributions that reveal how robotics can foster patient engagement, encourage active participation in care, support adherence, and improve quality of life across diverse rehabilitation contexts. Critically, contributions that provide evidence of clinical effectiveness, including measurable improvements in functional recovery, rehabilitation outcomes, or patient-reported wellbeing, are strongly encouraged. The Topic welcomes work spanning clinical environments, home-based settings, and hybrid care models, as well as studies that connect robotics with digital health, adaptive feedback, remote monitoring, and personalized therapeutic decision-making. By assembling contributions from across disciplines, this collection aims to stimulate dialogue and accelerate progress toward rehabilitation technologies that are not only technically advanced, but also accessible, acceptable, and genuinely relevant to patients’ lived experience and long-term wellbeing.

We welcome original research articles, reviews, methods papers, brief research reports, and perspectives that address medical robotics in relation to rehabilitation and patient engagement. Authors are encouraged to frame their work clearly in terms of the need addressed, the innovation proposed, the methodological rigor of the study, and its relevance for rehabilitation outcomes, engagement, autonomy, or quality of life. Contributions that combine technical depth with clinical, human-centered, and implementation-oriented insight will be especially valuable.

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:
- Rehabilitation and assistive robots, exoskeletons, and wearable or soft robotic systems;
- Intelligent sensing, adaptive control, and AI-supported personalization in rehabilitation;
- Human-robot interaction and user experience in clinical and home-based settings;
- Gamified rehabilitation and technology-driven approaches to patient motivation and adherence;
- Tele-rehabilitation, remote assessment, and digital health integration;
- Digital biomarkers and outcome measurement for robotic rehabilitation;
- Clinical effectiveness studies demonstrating functional recovery or patient-reported outcomes;
- Wellbeing-oriented care design, autonomy support, and quality of life across rehabilitation contexts.