Introduction to Virtual Reality Games for Movement Disorders
You’d call them games, but James S. Thomas, Ph.D., a professor within the Department of Physical Therapy at Virginia Commonwealth University, and his team call them interventions for patients with movement disorders. What began as a clinical trial at VCU to learn whether virtual reality (VR) games could relieve lower back pain has evolved to incorporate their use as therapy for those with Parkinson’s disease.
The Development of Virtual Reality Games
Thomas leads a team of multidisciplinary researchers at VCU’s Motor Control Lab within the College of Health Professions who’re developing immersive VR games to assist those with trunk control impairments attributable to orthopedic or neurological conditions get moving. The team has created games which are designed to progressively challenge not only how much patients move, but how briskly they move. For example, an easy fishing game lets users scoop fish that leap out of water and swat at an attacking shark every few seconds. Another game, a dodgeball game, shoots red balls at an avatar of the user, who has to punch the balls from the air.
How the Games Work
Participants wear a VR headset over their eyes and are immersed in a virtual world from the screen contained in the device. They hold a small controller in each hand, which serves as a fishing net or dodgeball-swatting hands. The games are designed to encourage patients to maneuver with higher trunk control, which is important for maintaining quality of life and independence. The team has also developed algorithms to tailor the sport experience to the person, allowing patients to maneuver at their very own pace and level of difficulty.
The Impact of Virtual Reality Games on Parkinson’s Disease
Parkinson’s disease is essentially the most common movement disorder and the second most typical neurodegenerative disorder, after Alzheimer’s disease. Individuals with Parkinson’s often experience trunk control impairments, which might result in a decline in independence and performance. The VR games developed by Thomas and his team have the potential to enhance trunk control and reduce symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. Alexander Stamenkovic, Ph.D., a postdoctoral fellow within the Motor Control Lab, notes that "trunk control is a critical feature that’s related to large declines in people’s lack of independence and performance."
Bringing the Technology to Market
VCU Innovation Gateway has worked with Thomas to guard and license the university’s mental property and support the event of the VR interventions. The team plans to make future versions of the VR system more portable, with the software integrated directly into the headset and requiring no wired connection to a pc. This would allow patients to make use of the system at home, without the necessity for a physical therapist. The goal is to create a system that shouldn’t be only effective but additionally accessible and inexpensive for patients.
Real-World Applications
The VR games have already shown promise in real-world applications. Bill McDaniel, an 81-year-old Parkinson’s patient, tried the dodgeball game and located it to be a useful tool for improving his movement. He was in a position to adjust the settings to suit his level of ability and located the sport to be enjoyable and interesting. The team hopes to make use of artificial intelligence to find out how patients move and robotically adapt the sport to their capabilities, making it an excellent more practical tool for improving trunk control and reducing symptoms of Parkinson’s disease.
Conclusion
The development of virtual reality games for movement disorders is a promising area of research that has the potential to enhance the lives of people with Parkinson’s disease and other movement disorders. The team at VCU’s Motor Control Lab is working to create a system that shouldn’t be only effective but additionally accessible and inexpensive for patients. With the assistance of VCU Innovation Gateway, the team hopes to bring this technology to market and make it available to those that need it most. The use of virtual reality games as a type of therapy has the potential to revolutionize the best way we approach movement disorders, and the team at VCU is on the forefront of this exciting latest field.
