Smart Rehabilitation: Integrating Wearables, Biomechanics, Neuropsychology, and Behavioural Science for Personalised Recovery and Therapy Adherence

Rehabilitation is central to recovery and quality of life after neurological injury, musculoskeletal conditions, and age-related decline, yet its success depends heavily on sustained patient engagement outside the clinic. Traditional programmes are often standardised, episodic, and difficult to monitor once the patient returns home, and long-term adherence remains low. In parallel, wearable sensors, mobile health platforms, computerised neuropsychological assessment, and machine learning now make it possible to measure movement, cognition, and behaviour continuously and unobtrusively in everyday settings. Neuropsychology and behavioural science add essential insight into the cognitive, motivational, and emotional factors that determine whether people start, maintain, and benefit from therapy. Integrating these perspectives offers a timely opportunity to rethink how recovery is designed, delivered, and personalised.Despite rapid technological progress, rehabilitation science still struggles with two linked problems: interventions are rarely tailored to the individual, and long-term adherence to home-based therapy is poor. Wearable and digital tools, biomechanical analysis, and neuropsychological assessment are frequently studied in isolation, limiting their combined clinical value. This Research Topic aims to bring these fields together to support personalised recovery and durable behaviour change. We seek work that uses wearables and sensor data to objectively quantify movement and function; that links biomechanical and neuropsychological markers to rehabilitation outcomes; and that applies behavioural science, self-regulation, and motivational frameworks to improve engagement and adherence. Recent advances in remote monitoring, tele-rehabilitation, digital phenotyping, gamification, and adaptive, data-driven feedback make an integrated, patient-centred approach increasingly feasible. By connecting clinical rehabilitation, digital health, and behavioural medicine, the Topic seeks evidence and frameworks that translate continuous data into individually tailored, sustainable therapy.Areas of interest include, but are not limited to the following:• Wearable technologies and sensor-based monitoring of movement, cognition, and daily activity in rehabilitation• Neuropsychological and cognitive assessment to guide and personalise recovery• Biomechanical markers and motor control as predictors of rehabilitation outcomes• Behavioural science, motivation, and self-regulation to improve long-term therapy adherence• Digital health, tele-rehabilitation, adaptive data-driven feedback, and gamification• Personalised rehabilitation in neurological, musculoskeletal, ageing, and clinical populations• Integration of multimodal data (movement, cognition, behaviour) for individually tailored therapyThis Research Topic welcomes Original Research, Reviews, Mini Reviews, Systematic Reviews, Methods, Study Protocols, Brief Research Reports, Perspectives, and Hypothesis and Theory articles. Submissions should include a clear neuropsychological or behavioural component and a clinically relevant rehabilitation application. Topic editors: George M. Pamboris, Anna Tsiakiri Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/85082/smart-rehabilitation-integrating-wearables-biomechanics-neuropsychology-and-behavioural-science-for-personalised-recovery-and-therapy-adherence