Clinicians can help patients
recover from strokes while they’re anywhere in the world by using a combination
of robotics and VR devices. It’s happening at Georgia Institute of Technology, where
patients undergoing neurorehabilitation, including those recovering from a
stroke, are outfitted with robotic devices called Motus, which are strapped to
their arms and legs. The goal is to speed up recovery and assist with
rehabilitation exercises. Patients and practitioners using the system wear
virtual reality headsets. The Motus device sends feedback to the clinician, who
can guide the patient through exercises designed to recover movements they have
lost. VR is increasingly being used to train health care providers, assist with
pain management, and provide telemedicine across the globe.
According to one study, VR plays
an important role in improving doctors’ performance and should be used as a
complementary education tool. Laparoscopic surgery, for example, can be taught
using VR, and this type of training leads to higher accuracy. It’s best for
medical residents to be trained via VR tools before attempting real-life
interventions on patients. VR is an effective way to learn how to perform
invasive hemodynamic monitoring and mechanical ventilation, the organization
says. However, VR isn’t yet a standard part of most physicians’ arsenals. VR
headsets are still crude, and image quality can’t compete with the real world.
Despite these drawbacks, VR holds a lot of promise in areas such as
telemedicine, surgery, and medical training.
More information:
https://time.com/6155085/virtual-reality-health-care/