Other projects

This project, developed in the Lecco area, aims to promote healthy aging among people aged between 60 and 80 through a digital therapy (DTx). In practical terms, it consists of a coaching app designed to help people become more active and maintain a healthy lifestyle. The app monitors a number of simple but important parameters, such as step count, walking speed, heart rate, and weekly eating habits, using commonly available wearable devices (such as Garmin or Fitbit, rather than medical devices). Based on the data collected, it provides personalized motivational messages to help sedentary individuals achieve at least 150 minutes of physical activity per week and to support those who are already active in maintaining healthy habits. The clinical validation will involve 200 healthy individuals aged between 60 and 80, recruited among participants in walking groups (already active) and students from the University of the Third Age (more sedentary). On a voluntary basis and after informed consent, participants will be divided into two groups: one using the app (intervention group) and one control group. The project is based on the idea that physical activity and cognitive training can improve not only physical fitness, but also memory, mood, and quality of life. For this reason, it integrates motor and cognitive exercises in a dual-task format, also in a social setting, encouraging interaction among peers. The objective is to assess whether this multidimensional approach can improve adherence to the program and the overall well-being of people over 60 in the Lecco area.

The project is co-funded by Fondazione Cariplo and Regione Lombardia.

The project develops and refines BioARMnext, a portable exoskeleton for the shoulder and elbow designed for people with brachial plexus injuries, with the aim of improving both rehabilitation and support in daily activities. The work focuses on enhancing the exoskeleton’s technological performance and on integrating advanced control systems capable of recognizing the user’s movement intentions and assisting them in a more natural way, including through Functional

Electrical Stimulation (FES). Compared with the previous project, BioARMnext significantly expands the scope of clinical testing by involving more centers and a larger number of patients, in order to assess not only safety and effectiveness, but above all whether the use of the exoskeleton can lead to a real improvement in the quality of life of the people who use it.

The study is funded by the National Institute for Insurance against Accidents at Work-INAIL.

The loss of motor abilities, caused by disease or trauma, affects many people and makes a rehabilitation pathway necessary, both to restore functions whenever possible and to enhance residual abilities in permanent conditions. However, current rehabilitation protocols still present important limitations: outcomes often depend on the operator, and clinical assessment tools do not always describe the patient’s actual condition with sufficient precision. In this context, exoskeletons and wearable robotic devices represent a promising solution, as they can support therapists’ work, make training more standardized, and provide more objective measurements of progress. The ClinicEXO project aims to validate new rehabilitation protocols and new assessment methods based on the use of exoskeletons developed by IIT and INAIL, in order to facilitate their integration into everyday clinical practice and accelerate their large-scale implementation.

The study is funded by the National Institute for Insurance against Accidents at Work-INAIL.

The S.E.R.E.N.A. project is developing an integrated technological ecosystem for the rehabilitation of frail patients, combining wearable sensors, environmental radar systems, and artificial intelligence. The system enables continuous monitoring, early detection of critical events, and personalization of therapeutic pathways through predictive models and virtual assistants. Clinical validation will be carried out at the Villa Beretta Rehabilitation Center. The industrial partners involved in the project are Eletech, Azcom Technology, Rold, Valos e Neuro-Zone-.

The project was funded by the Lombardy region for 150,000 euros.

The SYNAPSI project is developing a holistic digital platform that integrates physical telerehabilitation with cognitive and behavioral Digital Therapeutics (DTx) for the early

management of Parkinson’s disease and associated depression. Based on artificial intelligence, wearable devices, and virtual reality, the solution enables continuous monitoring, adaptive

personalization of therapeutic pathways, and clinical validation also in the home setting, while ensuring interoperability, data security, and full compliance with European regulations on medical devices and privacy.

The project is funded by Regione Lombardia and involves the following industrial partners: Almaviva, project lead, Nisatek, and AdvicePharma.

The Train4Brain project is a pilot study investigating the role of personalized physical activity in preventing cognitive decline, particularly in individuals with subjective cognitive decline (SCD), a condition that is increasingly common and considered at risk of progressing to dementia. Promoted by the University of Milano-Bicocca and conducted at the Villa Beretta Rehabilitation Center, the study involves 80 participants who are randomly assigned to either an active group or a control group. The active group will follow a personalized physical training program for three months, while the control group will not receive any specific interventions. The primary objective is to evaluate the effect of physical exercise on neurodegeneration biomarkers through blood and urine analyses. Additionally, the study will assess the impact of the training on functional abilities, inflammatory processes, and biological mechanisms related to neurodegeneration. Through this approach, Train4Brain aims to provide preliminary evidence on the effectiveness of physical activity as a preventive tool, contributing to the development of innovative models for promoting brain health and early intervention in cognitive decline risk.

The HarPD project is a randomized controlled clinical study investigating the effectiveness of non-pharmacological interventions in treating apathy in Parkinson’s disease, a common and complex condition that is often underestimated and associated with declines in quality of life, as well as cognitive and motor functions. Promoted by the Villa Beretta Rehabilitation Research Innovation Institute in collaboration with the University of Verona, the study aims to evaluate the role of music therapy — both active and receptive — and physical therapy in improving the various dimensions of apathy, understood as a multidimensional syndrome involving emotional, cognitive, and behavioral aspects. The experimental design includes two phases: in the first, participants are divided into three groups (individual active music therapy with harp, vibroacoustic therapy with harp music, and a control group); in the second, after a washout period, they are assigned to either group active music therapy or physical therapy. Treatments consist of structured sessions over eight weeks, with clinical, cognitive, motor, and emotional assessments conducted before and after the intervention, as well as at a six-month follow-up. The study integrates quantitative and qualitative methods, including neuropsychological tests, clinical scales, physiological measurements, and the collection of participants’ subjective experiences. The goal is to assess not only the effectiveness of the interventions on apathy but also their impact on motor and cognitive functions, mood, and quality of life. HarPD thus aims to develop an innovative music-based rehabilitation model capable of complementing traditional therapies and offering new perspectives in the integrated management of Parkinson’s disease, with potential clinical and social benefits.

The BB-REBUS project investigates the mechanisms underlying the interaction between the brain and body that lead to alterations in body perception in various neurological conditions, such as stroke, spinal cord injury, and multiple sclerosis. The objective is to understand why some patients perceive parts of their own body as foreign, heavy, or distorted, and how these changes impact functional recovery. The study involves evaluating approximately 70 patients in each clinical group using specific questionnaires, clinical scales, cognitive and motor tests, as well as neurophysiological and neuroimaging analyses. Participants are assessed at two different time points to monitor symptom progression. A key aspect of the project is the integration of multimodal data: clinical, behavioral, neural, and experiential information are analyzed using machine learning techniques to identify common and condition-specific patterns. The project aims to identify biomarkers and critical factors associated with altered body perception, ultimately facilitating the development of more precise diagnostic tools and personalized rehabilitation strategies to enhance treatment effectiveness.

The BB-REBUS project is the result of an international collaboration conducted without dedicated funding.