Parisian Graduate Students Using VR to Reduce Pain
Author(s): Scott Douglas Jacobsen
Publication (Outlet/Website): TrendBT
Publication Date (yyyy/mm/dd): 2018/06/12
A bunch of graduate students in France started the “Healthy Mind” initiative to create a VR product to help people who suffer from the pain.
The basic idea comes from the intent to reduce the pain felt by people through distraction in a VR environment. The head of the emergency department at the Saint-Joseph Hospital, Olivier Ganansia, talked about the possibility for the patients to use the technology to distract from pain and anxiety while being treated in the emergency room.
With 20 or more years behind the doctors and the researchers who tests the VR equipment and software, this helps change some of the means by which some facets of healthcare get delivered to patients.
The important point about this particular case comes from the help in the emergency care area. Some are looking to this VR technology as an alternative to the prescription medications some people receive, especially with the opioid crisis ongoing.
The report stated, “One of the leaders of the project, Reda Khouadra, told Reuters that patients put on a pair of VR goggles and are taken to a faraway land while undergoing procedures ranging from stitches, to burn treatment and joint dislocations. Researchers have already found that patients have a higher pain tolerance when using the VR.”
The offer in the VR for pain and anxiety is a guided tour with some interactive options and music. Some have the opportunity to virtually pain and solve puzzles. The Healthy Mind initiative won about $20,000 from the one university in Australia.
The people behind the initiative will be meeting representatives of Microsoft in Seattle soon based on the success of their early products. This type of utility in VR is not something wholly new.
It has been used to take out teeth by dentists, to do tooth extraction. Some have seen noticeable reductions in pain. The researchers, who are from the United Kingdom, wrote some descriptions of their positive research findings.
They stated, “Our research supports the previous positive findings of VR distraction in acute pain management, and suggests that VR nature can be used in combination with traditional [medication].” Howard Rose and Hunter Hoffman work in the bringing in of VR software and equipment into healthcare. Some see help with the phobias and psychological disorders. Hoffman has stated, “Acute pain is a perfect match for VR. You only need it for 20 minutes and it has drastic effects. If you say, ‘go home and meditate,’ not many patients will follow through… But if you give them a VR system and say ‘go into this ancient world and meditate with monks,’ they’re more likely to actually do it.”
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