Immersive Virtual Reality for individuals with spinal cord injuries

Abstract

Immersive Virtual Reality (VR) is an emerging technology with the potential to have a major impact in healthcare. Immersive VR is the best way for patients who are incapable of doing a certain task for their rehabilitation, to engage in a fun and enjoyable environment to improve their quality of life. Clinicians have found spinal cord injury patient interaction with VR environments challenging due to the nature of spinal cord injuries and the degree in which individuals with them can move. Due to some survivor's limited range of motion, it has been proven difficult to easily start VR therapy without the use of hands hitting a button on the side of the Samsung Gear VR headsets. Developers working on this study created an application that may provide a solution to the current problem, so that patient and clinician interaction with the VR environment is seamless and accessible. Patient and clinician interaction is imperative when dealing with VR applications, because knowing a patient's condition and reaction to specific environments is important. It also helps developers with knowing what to add to the application. Looking at certain research characteristics such as lag motion sickness, mirror neurons, neuroplasticity and gaming software developments provides coders and clinicians with the groundwork for proper development. This study utilized the Presence Questionnaire and the Immersive Tendencies Questionnaire surveys for feedback in order to assess how the survivors with spinal cord injury and clinicians received the immersive virtual reality solution.