Stochastic resonance for enhancing sensory perception: An emerging trend for ADL rehabilitation

Advancements in postural rehabilitation for activities of daily living (ADL) have been attributed to usage of smart devices that provide biofeedback. However, these routines are dependent on somatosensory functionality. Therefore, patients with poor/declining somatosensory functions will not benefit from the prospects of biofeedback. Hence, there is a need for new concepts that results in methods and designs to restore declining somatosensory functions. Studies show that delivery of sub-threshold noise to the somatosensory can enhance human sensation and perception of their surrounding. Despite such claims, there are only few reports available that seek to understand the mechanism of human postural control in the presence of sub-threshold noise. The mechanism of delivering sub-threshold noise is known as stochastic resonance (SR). SR is based on the concept that flow of information through a system can be maximized by the presence of noise. The potential of SR has been observed in both man-made and natural systems, although noise has been traditionally viewed to degrade signal quality. This paper reviews the progress in incorporating SR in postural rehabilitation, and seeks to identify potential future directions and unanswered research questions, which need to be explored before SR routines can be fully incorporated in ADL rehabilitation.