Electronic textiles have potential for many practical uses in clinical rehabilitation. This scoping review appraises recent and emerging developments of textile-based sensors with applications to rehabilitation. Contributions published from 2009 to 2013 are appraised with a specific focus on the measured physiological or biomechanical phenomenon, current measurement practices, textile innovations, and their merits and limitations. While fabric-based signal quality and sensor integration have advanced considerably, overall system integration (including circuitry and power) has not been fully realized. Validation against clinical gold standards is inconsistent at best, and feasibility with clinical populations remains to be demonstrated. The overwhelming focus of research and development has been on remote sensing but the opportunity for textile-mediated feedback to the wearer remains unexplored. Recommendations for future research are provided.

Fabric-based SGDs are a new alternative to conventional SGD designs using rigid electronics. As such, tactile differentiability of keys, device wearability and esthetic personalization may be promising advantages for pediatric users. Implications for rehabilitation Fabric-based switches may be a promising alternative to conventional electro-mechanical switches for the control of speech-generating devices, offering functional (e.g., comfort and tactile differentiability), expressive (e.g., non-stigmatizing textile integration) and esthetic (e.g., colors and textures) appeal. The material combination of two layers of woven conductive material and one insulating layer of felt with 10 mm diameter apertures seems to provide a fabric-based keypad suitable for pediatric use, requiring low-force activation and minimal cross-talk among buttons. Fabric-based devices offer advantages of tactile differentiability and thus may be particularly suited to individuals with vision impairments. Wearable textile SGDs can be persistently available and may thus increase opportunities for communication.

Results support the hypothesis that children with ASD have an intact ability to consistently produce continuous movements, but increased variability in production of discontinuous movements.