Virtual Reality Recovery

You might think that virtual reality computer gaming systems are just for fun, but researchers have discovered that they could play a useful role in enabling stroke patients to regain the use of paralysed limbs. When a stroke damages the left side of someone's brain, they can lose movement in the right side of their body, or vice versa, and it's an important part of rehabilitation to try and get the paralysed side moving again. Using a modified gaming system, patients are able to control a 'virtual body' using the movement of their paralysed arm. And by carrying out tasks in the virtual world, they start to strengthen the connection between their own body and brain in real life, building vital confidence in their physical abilities. After just ten minutes of training, patients were using their paralysed limb more often, suggesting that this game-based approach could have serious benefits.

Written by Kat Arney

Kat Arney

Writer

Dr Kat Arney is an award-winning science writer, broadcaster and public speaker, and is the founder and Creative Director of First Create The Media.

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• Image courtesy of Belén Rubio Ballester
• Laboratory of Synthetic Perceptive, Emotive and Cognitive Systems, Center of Autonomous Systems and Neurorobotics, Barcelona, Spain
• Copyright held by original author
• Research published in the Journal of Neuroengineering and Rehabilitation