Uses of Virtual Reality (VR) for Chronic Pain

Chronic pain affects many people worldwide with significant individual impact and societal cost. One such area involves the psychiatric co-morbidities associated with chronic pain. Despite its prevalence, the underlying mechanism of chronic pain is not fully understood although evidence suggests the importance of biologic, psychologic, and social factors in the perception of pain. Virtual reality has the potential to be a powerful therapeutic option for chronic pain. This may be due to its impact on attention, emotion, and potentially central nervous system plasticity. Virtual reality therapy has been used successfully for a variety of chronic pain conditions showing its potential. It has also been safely used in pediatric populations. However, the major current limitation is quality of evidence; therefore, future studies should aim to address this issue.

Virtual Reality (VR) for School Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

Various medical and technological organizations are working on the development of unconventional solutions such as therapy and assistance for people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Different organizations, researchers and educators have been involved in the study and realization of virtual reality (VR) solutions to be used as therapy, training, and support for these individuals. Previous researches and experiments showed that it is possible to ameliorate the level of concentration, coordination, socialization, communication, self-awareness, and memory in school children treated with these tools. VR environments may offer a total physical involvement of the ASDs that may see the world through virtual immersion and active practice. This chapter presents a way of rethinking teaching and learning.

Look of Life

The use of virtual reality (VR) shows promising results in improving the emotional wellbeing of cancer patients, reducing anxiety, depression, and pain symptoms. No data exist concerning the use of VR in cancer patients assisted at home. The ANT Foundation decided to conduct a pilot study to test the use of VR in cancer patients assisted at home. Fifty-eight ANT patients were randomized and assigned to a control group that didn't use VR devices and to an experimental group that used them. The primary objective of the pilot study was to determine whether VR device could be a viable instrument in homecare patients. Furthermore, the aim of the study was to discover if VR could have beneficial effects on patients' quality of life as well as discover which kind of videos were more effective. The innovative aspect of this study was to test the use of VR directly at home of patients, proposing a use of VR that is compatible with the needs and the daily rhythms of families, and investigating its effectiveness through appropriate validated psychometric questionnaires and semi-structured interviews.

Virtual Reality (VR) for Children Diagnosed With Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

Children and adolescents diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have significant difficulties with communication and social skills. Consequently, children diagnosed with ASD are often victims of social rejection and targets of bullying, which have an adverse impact on their emotional and mental wellbeing. Social anxiety, depression, and poor academic achievement are some of the consequences that can harm their whole lives. This chapter will begin with an elaboration of the challenges facing children and adolescents diagnosed with ASD. This will be followed by an introduction to virtual reality (VR) and its advantages for extending the capabilities of some of the traditional interventions developed to teach social and everyday living skills to children and adolescents diagnosed with ASD.

Virtual Reality Therapeutic Environments in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Alzheimer's

This chapter is devoted to observing and analyzing the role of virtual reality environments in the therapeutic treatment, analysis, and ongoing treatment planning of autistic spectrum disorders (ASD), Alzheimer's, and dementia. Using live real-world examples of the above activities in action and a literature review, the chapter will examine the level of empirical data and pre-existing qualitative and quantitative research to support these ongoing approaches. Critical analysis will also be made of the current level of empirical research available highlighting areas that should be focused on for future research.

Ubiquitous Bodies

While the digital era has provided us with an incredible amount of accessibility, availability, and speedy tools, it has also made us lose that sense of critical awareness that was once considered a rare and precious gift. The marking feature of the present is ubiquity, as in the loss of spatial and temporal coordinates and the gain of a presence-absence that new technologies allow us to live – both positively and negatively. The body is the core of this electronic, virtual, and increased involvement. In this phase we're living in, the author suggests we introduce the neologism “metrobody” to identify this new hybrid condition undertaken by the body. This expression allows the author to reconfigure and hypothesize a different level and a different meaning of corporeality.

The State of Virtual and Augmented Reality Therapy for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a heterogeneous neurodevelopmental condition affecting a growing number of individuals across the lifespan. It is characterized by observable impairments in social communication, as well as repetitive behaviors and restricted patterns of interests. Early, intensive behavioral interventions improve long-term outcomes in ASD, but are often expensive and hard to administer consistently. This chapter describes a new approach to autism intervention, using highly motivating virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) technologies that could soon support traditional autism therapies across ages and ability levels. The chapter begins by reviewing the ASD phenotype, followed by a review of the current landscape of research on VR and AR in ASD. A discussion of ASD-specific benefits and risks is followed by a presentation of new, harnessed immersive VR technology from Floreo, Inc. Finally, we propose a series of future research directions.

Virtual and Augmented Reality Mirrors for Mental Health Treatment

Virtual and Augmented Reality are technologies widely used in a variety of areas, including the medical sector. On the other hand, regular mirrors have been traditionally used as tools to aid in mental health treatment for a variety of diseases and disorders. Although it is possible to build Virtual and Augmented Reality experiences based on mirror metaphors, there are very few contributions of this kind in the medical sector. In this chapter, the great benefits that regular mirrors have brought for mental health treatment are addressed. In addition, a review on the state of the art in mirror-based Virtual and Augmented Reality applications is given, highlighting the potential benefits that these enhanced mirrors could bring for the mental health treatment.

Virtual Reality (VR) as Medical Prevention of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)

This chapter identifies numerous cases on adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and their link with post-traumatic stress disorders (PTSD). It explores the use of virtual reality (VR) as a clinical tool in diagnosis, prevention and treatment of ACEs. The emotional, physical, psychological and cognitive demands of a child going through ACEs are discussed using scientific researchers. The purpose of this chapter is to introduce the beneficial uses of virtual reality (VR) in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of ACEs.

Impact of Virtual Reality in Healthcare

Virtual reality (VR) is the simulation of reality where the users would be immersed in an artificial/virtual environment that isn't there but creates an illusion as if it really exists. People using this technology get a feeling that they are performing everything in real time. This gives users a sense of satisfaction. Initially, VR technology was used for gaming purposes, but now it is used in many sectors, including healthcare. There are many situations wherein, when it is expensive or impossible to do something, in reality, a probable solution is virtual reality. An important area where it is explored is healthcare for training doctors, diagnosis, and treatment of various ailments. The main objective of this chapter is to shed light on the applications of VR in healthcare and to discuss some applications showing how the medical field has already started reaping the benefits of VR.