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A new wave of psychological
research is pioneering Virtual Reality (VR) to treat medical conditions from social
anxiety to Alzheimer's disease.
Riding a wave of interest
in mental health tech, companies creating VR content for treatment are receiving
a flood of attention and funding. And, while VR has been used successfully to treat
post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) since the 1990s, these new programs address
a much broader range of conditions. The library of Palo Alto-based Limbix, for instance,
includes VR content designed to treat issues including alcohol addiction and teenage
depression. Barcelona-based Psious offers treatments for eating disorders.
Today's VR content is
primarily designed to aid exposure treatment, a treatment for anxiety disorders
in which patients are exposed to the "threats" they're worried about in
a safe, controlled environment, eventually learning that the "threats"
are not actually very dangerous. For example, someone who fears heights might visit
taller and taller buildings under the guidance of their doctor, while someone with
PTSD might revisit painful memories.
VR allows doctors to
create a safe and controlled environment inside a VR headset. It's a far safer,
quicker and less expensive option. Using VR also gives doctors much more control
over the intensity (强度)
of their patients' experiences, which can lead to better treatment outcomes, said
Stephane Bouchard, a professor at the University of Quebec. VR treatment patients
can also do things they couldn't do in the real world. "In one of our studies,
we asked patients who are afraid of heights to actually jump from a cliff,"
Bouchard said.
However, not all VR
treatment content is created equal. "Some companies show videos of VR environments
that are incomplete, untested and definitely haven't been tried out by psychologists,"
Bouchard said. Clearer rules and standards will make it easier for patients and
doctors to identify products that work.