A new project is aiming to cut rehabilitation times for patients recovering from conditions including sports injuries, stroke and dystonia (uncontrolled muscle spasms).
PRIME-VR2 is a two-year project funded as part of the EU’s Horizon 2020, billed as Europe’s biggest ever funding programme for research and innovation.
The project hopes that it will be able to cut rehab times by almost a third (30%) by using a combination of virtual reality (VR) technology and gaming-style techniques.
A team of engineers and academics from Strathclyde University and the National Manufacturing Institute Scotland (NMIS) have designed a system that they believe will be more stimulating than existing programmes.
The VR system will complement rather than replace traditional rehabilitation techniques, but the researchers hope that it will increase both recovery speeds and completion rates for the programmes it is attached to.
It could also serve to ease the physical demands on physical and occupational therapists delivering a rehabilitation programme.
The system utilises a type of level progression that will be familiar to gamers, with participants asked to make progress by completing online tasks.
At the same time, medical staff can keep track of patients’ progress and offer real-time support via the system’s digital platform.
Patients can improve motor skills with a bespoke controller
The team behind the system say that it should help patients to improve movement and motor skills in their upper body, particularly in their hands, arms, wrists and fingers.
The tasks and activities provided in the programme will be tailored to the individual’s condition and needs, including their physical and cognitive impairments.
As an example, a patient with dystonia could practice pouring a glass of water in a virtual environment, without the risk of spilling or dropping it in the real world.
As well as the virtual programme itself, the researchers and industrial partners Loud1Design are designing an accompanying video game-style controller.
These bespoke controllers are also tailored for different requirements and the units will be individually made for each patient.
Andrew Wodehouse, a senior lecturer at Strathclyde University, said that the project would make long recovery periods more engaging for patients while allowing their performance to be accurately monitored and recorded.
This would allow people administering the programme to set specific measurable goals, reducing the overall rehabilitation time required.
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