JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Unlike most of the virtual reality (VR) trainings which targeted at homogenous populations, a set of VR games for rehabilitation purposes targeted for a heterogeneous group of users was developed. The VR games covers physical training, cognitive training, community living skills training and scenery experiences. Special considerations for local older adults and people with disabilities were made in terms of hardware choice and software design.

Objective:

The current study aimed to evaluate the feasibility, acceptance, and effectiveness of the VR training among users with varying abilities.

Methods:

A single-armed pretest–posttest evaluation study was conducted from May 2019 to January 2020. The participants of the evaluation study were encouraged to undergo a 30-minute VR training 3 times a week for 6 weeks. The 30-minute session consisted of 10 minutes of upper-limb motion games, 10 minutes of lower-limb motion games, and 10 minutes of cognitive games/community living skills training/scenery experiences. On completion of each session, usage statistics were documented via the built-in VR software whereas feedback on the experience of VR games was collected via self-reports and staff observations. Higher acceptance was reflected by positive feedback. In addition, health outcomes including upper-limb dexterity, functional mobility, cognitive function and happiness were assessed at baseline, as well as six and three months after baseline. The primary outcomes were upper-limb dexterity and acceptance of playing VR games.

Results:

135 participants were recruited, and 124 (91.9%) completed the follow-ups. About 76.4% of the participants could attend at least 70% of the proposed 18 sessions, and 72.5% had training time for at least 20 minutes per session. Linear mixed models showed statistically significant effects in terms of upper-limb dexterity (small effect) and cognitive function (moderate effect). Among the 135 participants, 88 provided positive comments. About 10.4% reported mild discomfort such as dizziness, and none reported severe discomfort.

Conclusions:

A set of VR training for rehabilitation purpose could be applied to users of heterogeneous abilities. It was acceptable to local older adults and those with different disabilities. Benefits in upper-limb dexterity and cognitive function were observed despite partial compliance to training protocol. Service providers could make reference to our experience in developing VR training system for their clients. Clinical Trial: Nil.