Purpose: We describe two case studies that use embodiment in virtual reality as a treatment for chronic low back pain. The purpose of this case series was to determine the feasibility of a novel virtual reality-based digital therapeutic for the treatment of chronic pain.
Patients And Methods: Two patients with chronic low back pain received seven sessions, two sessions per week, of a novel digital therapeutic that combines virtual embodiment with graded motor imagery to deliver functional rehabilitation exercises using an off-the-shelf virtual reality system. Pain intensity was measured using a visual analog scale before and after each session to get an indication whether individual sessions of virtual embodiment training decrease pain intensity. Pain catastrophizing scale was assessed before the first session and after the seventh session to determine the extent to which virtual embodiment training can improve psychological symptoms of chronic low back pain.
Results: In both patients, pain intensity was improved after individual sessions of virtual embodiment training as measured by a paired -test: (Patient A: t = 2.890, P < 0.05) and (Patient B: t = 5.346, P < 0.005). This indicates that individual sessions of virtual embodiment training decrease pain intensity. In both patients, improvements were observed in three subscales of the pain catastrophizing scale (rumination, magnification, and helplessness). This indicates that virtual embodiment training may have benefits for chronic pain symptoms such as pain intensity, pain-related mobility impairment, and disability.
Conclusion: This case series provides evidence that embodiment in virtual reality improves symptoms of persistent chronic low back pain. We propose a mechanism by which virtual embodiment may improve chronic pain symptoms by recontextualizing sensory feedback from the body as patients engage in functional rehabilitation exercises while in virtual reality.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.2147/JPR.S275312 | DOI Listing |
J Clin Med
November 2024
Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, University of Barcelona, Passeig de la Vall d'Hebron 171, 08035 Barcelona, Spain.
: A high number of patients who suffer the amputation of a lower limb will present psychological problems such as anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder after surgery. This study embodies participants in a self-avatar with a right lower-limb amputation in a virtual reality environment. The aim was to determine if this experience increases anxiety levels compared to embodiment in a normal avatar.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBehav Brain Res
December 2024
Graduate School of Medicine, Oita University, Oita, Japan; Faculty of Welfare and Health Science, Oita University, Oita, Japan; Graduate School of Welfare and Health Science, Oita University, Oita, Japan. Electronic address:
PLoS One
December 2024
Department of Psychology, University of Milan-Bicocca, Milan, Italy.
Body ownership refers to the feeling that the body belongs to oneself. This study explores how our ability to predict our body's location in space influences feelings of ownership and disownership towards it, comparing two illusion techniques: the virtual Rubber Hand Illusion (vRHI) and the first-person perspective Full-Body Illusion (1pp-FBI). Participants were exposed to each illusion, where they observed a virtual body aligned or misaligned with their own.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJMIR Serious Games
December 2024
CORE Lab, Psychosomatic Competence Center, Department of Neurology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Freiburgstrasse 41, Bern, 3010, Switzerland, 41 31 632 70 00.
Background: Chronic pain presents a significant treatment challenge, often leading to frustration for both patients and therapists due to the limitations of traditional methods. Research has shown that synchronous visuo-tactile stimulation, as used in the rubber hand experiment, can induce a sense of ownership over a fake body part and reduces pain perception when ownership of the fake body part is reported. The effect of the rubber hand experiment can be extended to the full body, for example, during the full-body illusion, using both visuo-tactile and cardiovisual signals.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDigit Health
December 2024
Technical University of Denmark, Lyngby, Hovedstaden Denmark.
Objective: Engaging users during physical exercise is crucial for fostering long-term commitment, however, sustaining that engagement remains a significant challenge. This study explores the design of a voice-enabled exoskeleton-based virtual exercise coach (VEC) that provides real-time verbal feedback to enhance user engagement. The objectives of this study are twofold: (i) to compare user engagement with real-time verbal feedback from both VEC and human exercise coach (HEC) during physical exercise, and (ii) to understand users' perceptions and gather their recommendations for improving future VEC technologies.
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