"Virtual reality fixed me": A case report of the use of virtual reality during intensive interdisciplinary pain treatment.
Christopher D King, Vanessa A Olbrecht, Susan L Crowley and 6 others
PMID 39150838WHAT IT FOUND
A child in intensive interdisciplinary pain treatment described virtual reality as helping her move, reduce pain focus, and feel safe.
Therapists observed improvements, but this is a single person, not proof virtual reality works.
Key findings
01The patient described virtual reality as immersive, distracting her from pain, and helping her begin and increase movement.
02Therapists reported observing better movement, standing, grasp, and fewer pain behaviors during virtual reality sessions than during non-virtual reality sessions for this patient.
03Virtual reality was added to coordinated and concurrent treatment from pain and rehabilitation medicine, behavioral psychology, physical therapy, recreational therapy, and occupational therapy, so its separate contribution cannot be identified.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
This is a single case report, so it cannot show whether virtual reality caused the improvements or whether they would occur without it. Virtual reality was delivered inside an intensive interdisciplinary program with occupational therapy, physical therapy, recreational therapy, behavioral psychology, and pain and rehabilitation medicine, so the contribution of any one component cannot be separated. The interview happened only after discharge, and no data were collected after each virtual reality session, so changes over time were not tracked. Therapist observations were not formal outcomes and were made by staff who delivered the treatment. The authors state that more rigorous trials are needed.
Declared interests
The authors report no financial relationships relevant to the article and no potential conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read this as proof that virtual reality fixes pediatric chronic pain or functional neurological disorder. It is a single case report, and virtual reality was delivered inside an intensive interdisciplinary program with occupational therapy, physical therapy, recreational therapy, behavioral psychology, and pain and rehabilitation medicine, so its separate effect cannot be identified.