DyCare

AI-powered tailored rehabilitation for back-pain.

The challenge

Rehabilitation needs cover a wide range of conditions, from musculoskeletal and respiratory disorders to pelvic floor and speech-related issues. These conditions affect millions of people worldwide, limiting independence, lowering quality of life, and creating a heavy burden on healthcare systems. With ageing populations and already stretched resources, the demand for rehabilitation is growing faster than healthcare systems can support.

The numbers highlight the scale of the problem:

• By 2025, the global cost of rehabilitation-related conditions is expected to reach €800 billion annually. [1]
• Lower back pain (LBP) alone currently affects 619 million people worldwide and is projected to rise to 843 million by 2050. [2]
• In Europe, musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) affect around 200 million people annually, accounting for 2% of regional GDP in healthcare costs and productivity losses. [3]
• LBP is the leading cause of disability globally, responsible for 16% of all disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) and disproportionately affecting working-age populations. [4]

For patients, access to rehabilitation is often limited by long waiting times, travel distances, and a lack of personalised care. For healthcare professionals, the absence of advanced monitoring tools makes it difficult to track progress and adapt treatment. As a result, patients frequently drop out of rehabilitation programmes, which increases the risk of long-term disability by more than 60%. [5], [6]

This combination of high prevalence, poor accessibility, and rising costs makes rehabilitation one of the most urgent challenges for healthcare systems across Europe.

The solution

ReHub is an AI-powered rehabilitation platform designed to transform care for patients with non-specific back pain. By combining Computer Vision technology with a digital, patient-centred care model, ReHub enables safe, effective, and scalable therapy at home. At its core, ReHub leverages real-time motion tracking and intelligent feedback to deliver safe, precise, and highly effective therapy at scale.

The process begins with an initial assessment, either in-person or remotely, where the therapist uses ReHub’s integrated evaluation tools to design a personalised therapy plan. This includes tailored exercises, session frequency, and regular checkpoints.

How it works:

• Real-time motion tracking: Using computer vision, ReHub monitors over 60 anatomical landmarks and spinal motion patterns during exercises.
• Intelligent feedback: Patients receive instant voice and visual cues to correct posture, pace, and range of motion. This ensures proper form, reducing the risk of injury, and building confidence.
• Personalised therapy plans: Therapists use integrated assessment tools to design tailored exercise programmes. Patients follow three to four daily 15-minute guided sessions, and this high-frequency, low-duration approach reflects best-practice clinical evidence, maintaining engagement and optimising outcomes.
• Continuous remote monitoring: Clinicians track progress via intuitive dashboards, adjust therapy as needed, and intervene proactively without requiring constant in-person visits.

With this approach, ReHub turns rehabilitation into an interactive, supportive journey giving patients more autonomy while enabling clinicians to deliver high-quality care more efficiently.

Expected impact

Through the DyCare project, ReHub is expected to deliver measurable improvements for patients, healthcare systems, and society. This includes:

1. Better health outcomes: With adherence rates expected to reach up to 80% (much higher than traditional rehabilitation), patients benefit from more consistent engagement, faster recovery, and reduced risk of disability.
2. Healthcare efficiency: By shifting from resource-intensive in-person therapy to scalable, home-based rehabilitation, ReHub frees up clinician time, reduces waiting lists, and makes care more accessible.
3. Economic sustainability: More efficient rehabilitation pathways will generate significant cost savings for healthcare providers, insurers, and society, while helping patients return to work and daily life sooner.

In short, ReHub provides a clinically validated, scalable solution that addresses the rising rehabilitation burden, improving quality of life for patients while strengthening the resilience and sustainability of healthcare systems across Europe.

External Partners

• Bio-Sensing Solutions SL – DyCare (Activity Leader)
• DTx Research Solutions GmbH

References

[1] World Health Organization (WHO), “Global Estimates of the Need for Rehabilitation, https://www.who.int/teams/noncommunicablediseases/sensory-functions-disability-and-rehabilitation/global-estimates-of-the-need-for-rehabilitation.

[2] Mauck, M.C., et al. (2023) ‘The Back Pain Consortium (BACPAC) Research Program: Structure, Research Priorities, and Methods’, Pain Medicine, 24(Suppl 1), pp. S3–S12

[3] European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA), “MSDs Facts and Figures: An Overview of Prevalence, Costs, and Demographics of MSDs in Europe, https://osha.europa.eu/en/publications/msds-facts-and-figures-overview-prevalence-costs-anddemographics-msds-europe.

[4] Vos, T., Lim, S. S., Abbafati, C., Abbas, K. M., et al. (2012). “Global Burden of Disease 2010: A Systematic Analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study.” The Lancet, https://www.thelancet.com/gbd/2010.

[5] European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA), “Work-Related MSDs in Germany,” https://osha.europa.eu/sites/default/files/work_related_MSDs_Germany.pdf.

[6] World Health Organization (WHO), “Rehabilitation 2030 Initiative,” https://www.who.int/initiatives/rehabilitation-2030.