The Role of Artificial Intelligence in Future Rehabilitation Services: a Systematic Literature Review

Artificial intelligence technologies are considered crucial in supporting a decentralized model of care in which therapeutic interventions are provided from a distance. In the last years, various approaches have been proposed to support remote monitoring and smart assistance in rehabilitation services. A comprehensive state-of-the-art of machine learning methods and applications is presented in this review. Following PRISMA guidelines, a systematic literature search strategy was led in PubMed, Scopus, and IEEE Xplore databases. The search yielded 519 records, resulting in 35 articles included in this study. Supervised and unsupervised machine learning algorithms were identified. Unobtrusive capture motion technologies have been identified as strategic applications to support remote and smart monitoring. The most addressed tasks by algorithms were activity recognition, movement classification, and clinical status prediction. Some authors evidenced drawbacks concerning the low generalizability of the results retrieved. Artificial intelligence-based applications are likely to impact the delivery of decentralized rehabilitation services by providing broad access to sustained and high-quality therapy. Future efforts are needed to validate artificial intelligence technologies in specific clinical populations and evaluate results reliability in remote conditions and home-based settings.