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In Kilo Health’s trend analysis for 2023, the company predicted an increase in the use and popularity of Virtual Reality prescriptions. This prediction was triggered by the approval of EaseVRx by the FDA.
A prescription-use virtual reality, EaseVRx offers an opioid-free way of managing pain, and its inception could have benefits for reducing the reliance on opioids in the future. It uses cognitive-behavioral therapy and other behavioral methods to reduce pain in patients with chronic lower back pain.
But how does VR work in a medical setting and what is it useful for?
Table of Contents
Pain Management
VR has been used in a range of ways to better regulate pain, from painful dressing changes to chronic conditions, and this report published in JMIR Serious Games journal showed how the research backs up the assertion that VR can be used for significant pain relief.
For pain relief, VR systems use a range of meditative and mindfulness systems as well as CBT to help regulate pain. These techniques help to redirect negative thought patterns and focus on the present moment, and research published by NIH found that patients who used VR during incredibly painful procedures were able to divert their thoughts and experience very little pain.
Mental Health
Since VR uses a number of popular and highly effective methods of treatment for mental health conditions, namely CBT, it makes sense that VR could also be used to treat and maintain these mental health conditions too.
Kilo Health is already looking into VR prototypes to be used for the effective treatment of mental health issues. The company, usually at the forefront of innovation in the industry, is always on the lookout for fresh talent from the technology and scientific communities to employ some of these impressive new ideas and turn them into a physical reality.
Virtual Reality has actually been employed in a few mental health settings over the years, but with a turn toward more digital and technological interventions in health, VR is set to become a much more prominent therapy in the treatment of mental health in the future.
In fact, on top of the use of CBT, meditation, and mindfulness, this study published by Frontiers suggests that VR could even be used as a form of Exposure Therapy in the treatment of some mental health conditions.
Kilo Health made its first foray into digital mental health maintenance with the release of the Sensa app. If their success with this product is anything to go by, VR mental health therapy offered by Kilo Health will be just as good.
Conclusion: VR Prescriptions as a New Approach in Health Care
Virtual Reality has long been associated with video gaming and so its new use in the medical field may take some people by surprise. Keep your eye on big players, like Kilo Health, to see how they use VR to create innovative new ways to maintain our health in the future.
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