Immersive Technology in Healthcare
Just a technological watch on uses of immersive technologies in healthcare
Rothbaum and her collaborator, computer scientist Larry Hodges, were set on devising a virtual alternative to traditional exposure therapy, in which therapists help patients confront anxiety-inducing stimuli in real life or by simply visualizing triggers. Using VR meant that Rothbaum didn’t have to rely on her patients’ imaginations, or physically take them to the highest … Read more
A recent systematic review and meta-analysis examined the use of VR to improve balance in patients with PD. The authors conducted the study because previous reviews have found inconsistent conclusions about the efficacy of VR for this population. Source: Virtual Reality Training Improves Balance for Patients With Parkinson Disease
According to one study, virtual reality plays an important role in improving doctors’ performance and should be used as a complementary education tool. Laparoscopic surgery, for example, can be taught using VR, and this type of training leads to higher accuracy. VR tools are “very effective in transferring skills to the operating room,” the study … Read more
Joe O’Connor, 62, who lives near Worcester, Mass., was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease six years ago. Exercise is one of the only things that slows the progress of the chronic disease, so he works out avidly — often in a virtual reality world. He dances. He plays tennis. He enjoys games that help him work … Read more
Over the years, scientists and experts in the dental health industry have searched for ways to better the practice and achieve more precise results. Thankfully, it has been discovered that we are closer to achieving this goal with the application of virtual reality and augmented reality. Here are some of the ways virtual reality and … Read more
Scientists at King’s College London have developed a cognitive test that enables clinicians to assess the functional cognition of patients by enabling them to complete complex everyday tasks in virtual reality. The so-called VStore recreates a virtual shopping world that accurately mirrors the in-store shopping experience. Source: Virtual Reality Used to Assess Functional Cognition
As the skin is an accessible organ and many dermatological diagnostics still rely on the visual examination and palpation of the lesions, dermatology could be dramatically impacted by augmented and virtual reality technologies. If the emergence of such tools raised enormous interest in the dermatological community, we must admit that augmented and virtual reality have … Read more
The Department of Veterans Affairs has been at the forefront of using virtual reality to help treat patients. However, it’s not just veterans that are benefiting from using VR technology to address mental health issues.Active-duty military personnel, most prominently in the Air Force and Army, are using VR headsets and software to address healing from … Read more
Researchers from the University of Basel have developed an augmented reality app for smartphones in order to help people reduce their fear of spiders. The app has already shown itself to be effective in a clinical trial, with subjects experiencing less fear of real spiders after completing just a few training units with the app … Read more
Medical providers in the workers compensation sector have successfully reduced their reliance on opioids to help injured workers manage their pain, and some are experimenting with technologies such as virtual reality as an alternative to medication. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the first virtual reality device for treating chronic pain in 2020, but … Read more