Researcher in the spotlight

In this edition of Researcher in the Spotlight, we are thrilled to feature Nicolás Jiménez, CEO and Co-Founder of Kinesix XR, a leader in the innovative field of immersive rehabilitation.

As a neurological physiotherapist who graduated from the European University of Madrid, with the soul of an occupational therapist and a passion for techno-creativity, specializing in robotics and virtual reality applied to brain injury from the University of Castilla-La Mancha, he felt a strong need to elevate our profession and rehabilitation practices to the next level through immersive technologies. Moving beyond the adaptation of two-dimensional video games, his goal was to foster the integration and synergy between neuroscience and clinical experience using advanced three-dimensional immersive technologies.

From that moment, he visualized how motor control theories and motor learning principles could directly influence the specialized design of new immersive environments with therapeutic objectives and interactions. This vision was quickly enhanced by the rapid development of virtual and augmented reality devices over the past five years, evolving from wired headsets and gloves to portable devices with integrated cameras, allowing precise, real-time tracking of hands and fingers. This advancement strongly encouraged research and development of new tools within the framework of digital therapeutics.

This marked the beginning of his journey, undertaking a comprehensive review of all available clinical evidence with my team and leading the development of specialized tools in neurorehabilitation. These tools were swiftly introduced into clinical settings for validation and user satisfaction assessment. Concurrently, he designed his first clinical study with subacute stroke survivors at Clínica Alemana in Santiago, Chile, confirming his methodology’s effectiveness in enhancing patient motivation and increasing therapeutic intensity delivered by professionals. As the system received continuous feedback from experts and patients in neurorehabilitation, its use rapidly expanded to address significant orthopedic cases, such as amputations and severe burn injuries. This facilitated further research collaboration with other hospitals focused on workplace and traumatic accidents. Consequently, he4 and his team carried out a second clinical study involving individuals who had suffered finger amputations due to work-related accidents and a third case study with a severely burned patient who had 70% of their body affected. They achieved significant outcomes in pain reduction, enhanced motivation, and improved motor functions of the upper limbs, trunk control, and balance, even facilitating complex activities such as squatting and jumping.

These advancements, along with their participation in international conferences such as XR4REHAB, have allowed them to establish and strengthen new research collaborations. In his case, this progress led him to begin his doctoral studies under the supervision of Professor Mindy Levin, focusing on analyzing human behavior and upper limb movements using novel volumetric digital biomarkers. Furthermore, he complements this work with a research and development project alongside Professor Joyce Fung, which focuses on integrating lower limb assessments and gait training using mixed reality.

This 2025 could not have had a better start, with incredible collaborations and trips around the world that expand the applicability of new immersive technologies in rehabilitation, with an attractive agenda, participating in May in the Rehabweek Congress in Chicago, the World Congress of Physiotherapy in Tokyo, and in June in the next XR4REHAB in Milan.

Everyone with an affinity (in the broadest sense) with XR technology in the healthcare and rehabilitation sector can become member of the XR4REHAB Collaboration & Innovation Network and benefit from several advantages.

All we ask from you is active participation. How? For instance by joining one of the working groups, by the provision of research expertise, by granting access to patients or IT students.

Interested?  Find more information here.