Virtual reality therapy
It is widely used as an alternative form of exposure therapy, in which patients interact with harmless virtual representations of traumatic stimuli in order to reduce fear responses.
Virtual reality therapy has also been used to help stroke patients regain muscle control, to treat other disorders such as body dysmorphia, and to improve social skills in those diagnosed with autism.
In many environmental phobias, reaction to the perceived hazards, such as heights, speaking in public, flying, close spaces, are usually triggered by visual and auditory stimuli.
In VR-based therapies, the virtual world is a means of providing artificial, controlled stimuli in the context of treatment, and with a therapist able to monitor the patient's reaction.
For soldiers who have developed PTSD from combat, this could mean first exposing them to a virtual reality scene of their fellow troops being shot or injured followed by less stressful stimuli such as only the sounds of war.
The studies identified in the review show that psychosocial VRT can improve cognitive, social, and vocational skills as well as symptoms of auditory verbal hallucinations and paranoia in individuals with psychosis.
[13] Augmented reality poses additional benefits and has proven itself to be a medium through which individuals with a specific phobia can be exposed "safely" to the object(s) of their fear, without the costs associated with programming complete virtual environments.
Lamson wrote in 1993 a book entitled Virtual Therapy which was published in 1997 directed primarily to the detailed explanation of the anatomical, medical and therapeutic basis for the success of VRT.
While the actual cost of VRET may vary based on the hardware and software implementation, it is supposedly more effective than the traditional in vivo treatment used for exposure therapy while maintaining a positive return on investment.
For instance, in 2011, researchers at York University proposed an affordable virtual reality exposure therapy (VRET) system for the treatment of phobias that could be set up at home.
In their view the term applies to both physical therapy and cognitive interventions (such as for patients with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, phobias, anxieties, attention deficits or amnesia).
In February 2006 the UK's National Institute of Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) recommended that VRT be made available for use within the NHS across England and Wales, for patients presenting with mild/moderate depression, rather than immediately opting for antidepressant medication.
At Auckland University in New Zealand, a team led by Dr. Sally Merry have been developing a computerized CBT fantasy "serious" game to help tackle depression amongst adolescents.
Avatar therapy has shown promising results in clinical trials, demonstrating improvements in reducing the impact of auditory hallucinations compared to standard treatment options.
[43] Digital spaces offer a form of anonymous self-expression that trans individuals, due to exposure of discrimination and violence, are not fully granted to them in real life or IRL.
This study, although insufficient in terms of scope and scrutiny for direct adoption into remedial practices, surrounds future research and treatment modeling with promise, as a majority of the participants considered themselves no longer afraid of heights.
[50] Research suggests that patients who had a stroke found virtual reality (VR) rehab techniques in their Physical Therapy treatment plans very beneficial.
The simulation technology of virtual reality lends itself to mastery oriented treatment ... Rather than coping with threats, phobics manage progressively more threatening aspects in a computer-generated environment ...
Another study examined the effectiveness of virtual reality therapy in treating military combat personnel recently returning from the current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
VR combined real instrument training was effective at promoting recovery of patients' upper-extremity and cognitive function, and thus may be an innovative translational neurorehabilitation strategy after stroke.
The researchers who developed the BRAVEMIND system reported that in a 20-patient trial, the patients' scores on the diagnostic PTSD checklist–military version (PCL-M) dropped from 54.4 pre-treatment to 35.6 post-treatment after eleven sessions.
Designed environments such as U.S. base settings, shower areas, latrines, remote shelters, and others were developed after consulting subject matter experts from Emory University.
This city in virtual reality evoked memory, attention, visuo-spatial abilities and executive functions tasks are integrated in the performance of several daily routines.
[87] The introduction of Virtual Reality Therapy (VRT) into the healthcare sector has prompted the need for regulatory standards and approvals to ensure the safety and efficacy of this technology.
VRT has been recognized for its potential in providing therapeutic benefits across various medical conditions, including pain management, anxiety, rehabilitation, and mental health challenges.
The regulatory landscape for VRT is evolving, with guidelines aiming to categorize these solutions under the medical devices framework, ensuring they meet the required safety, quality, and performance standards.
For instance, the EaseVRx system by AppliedVR received FDA approval through the De Novo premarket review pathway, highlighting the role of regulatory controls in classifying VRT solutions and ensuring their safety and efficacy.
[88] Furthermore, the Federal Register highlighted the classification of a Virtual Reality Behavioral Therapy Device for Pain Relief into class II with special controls.
This classification necessitates compliance with specific controls, including clinical performance testing and biocompatibility evaluation, to mitigate associated risks and protect patient safety.
Some of these side effects and aftereffects could include cybersickness (a type of motion sickness caused by the virtual reality experience), perceptual-motor disturbances, flashbacks, and generally lowered arousal (Rizzo, Schultheis, & Rothbaum, 2003).
