The Future of Patient Care Created by Application of Virtual Reality and Gaming Technology in Rehabilitation Medicine

Abstract

An aging population and declining birth rate have resulted in a significant increase in demand for healthcare and put additional burdens on healthcare professionals. Therefore, providing efficient healthcare through digital technology has become a priority. With the aim of improving treatment efficacy, we have developed the medical device, mediVR KAGURA, for rehabilitation by means of virtual reality（VR）technology through industry-academia collaboration activities at Osaka University. This device is being utilized to manage ataxia, walking and upper limb disabilities, cognitive dysfunc-tion, and chronic pain. The safety of the training, which is performed in the sitting position, and its high therapeutic efficacy are appealing features to physicians. These effects can be explained central-ly by functional integration or what is also known as cortical reorganization in the brain. This section reviews how gamification concepts are reflected in therapeutic effects, focusing on the following three concepts：（1）non-verbal communication；（2）affordance to induce awareness and behavioral chang-es；and（3）reinforcing successful experiences by stimulating rewards and emotions during rehabilitation. Although the use of VR technology in rehabilitation medicine has produced disappointing results in recent decades, we believe that mediVR KAGURA will open up new avenues and help more pa-tients worldwide.