Exploring Virtual Doppelgangers as Movement Models to Enhance Voluntary Imitation

Kammler-Sücker, Kornelius; Löffler, Annette; Kleinböhl, Dieter; Flor, Herta

doi:10.1109/tnsre.2021.3120795

Cited by 4 publications

(2 citation statements)

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“…In addition to using VR for short term distraction from acute pain, there is growing interest in whether immersive virtual reality and/or augmented reality can be used to help reduce chronic pain, e.g., phantom limb pain or back pain 57 , 58 see 15 for a brief review). After having a limb amputated, most amputees experience painful sensations in the limb that is no longer there 59 , 60 .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Adding tactile feedback increases avatar ownership and makes virtual reality more effective at reducing pain in a randomized crossover study

Hoffman

Fontenot

García‐Palacios

et al. 2023

Sci Rep

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Severe pain is a widespread health problem in need of novel treatment approaches. In the current study we used real water to give virtual objects (i.e., animated virtual water) more realistic physical properties (wet liquid qualities). Healthy volunteers aged 18–34 participated in a within-subject randomized study comparing participants’ worst pain during brief thermal stimuli with (1) No Immersive Virtual Reality (VR), versus (2) during VR + no tactile feedback versus (3) VR + real water (with tactile feedback from co-located real objects). Tactile feedback significantly decreased pain intensity (VR analgesia, p < 0.01), compared to VR with no tactile feedback, and compared to No VR (baseline). Tactile feedback made the virtual water feel significantly more real, increased participant’s sense of presence, and both VR conditions were distracting (significantly reduced accuracy on an attention demanding task). As a non-pharmacologic analgesic, mixed reality reduced pain by 35% in the current study, comparable to the analgesia from a moderate dose of hydromorphone in previous published experimental studies. Tactile feedback also significantly increased avatar embodiment, the participants illusion of ownership of the virtual hands, which has potential to improve the effectiveness of avatar therapy for chronic pain in future studies. Mixed reality should be tested as treatment in pain patients.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Adding tactile feedback increases avatar ownership and makes virtual reality more effective at reducing pain in a randomized crossover study

Hoffman

Fontenot

García‐Palacios

et al. 2023

Sci Rep

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…For example, when a person with chronic hand pain performs tasks in a virtual environment with the virtual hand without pain, this can lead to a prediction error because the experience differs from painful expectations. 2…”

Section: Letter To the Editormentioning

confidence: 99%

Reply to Yang and Lu

Tesarz,

Reichert,

Herpel

et al. 2024

Pain

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Effects of personalized movement models in virtual reality on pain expectancy and motor behavior in patients with chronic back pain: a feasibility study

2023

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Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) of chronic pain focuses on behavioral, cognitive, affective and social factors that play a role in the transition from acute to chronic pain, which often is initially caused by a specific event but then takes on “a life of its own”. CBT models assume that fear of pain and subsequent avoidance behavior contribute to pain chronicity and the maintenance of chronic pain. In chronic back pain (CBP), avoidance is often addressed by teaching patients to reduce pain behaviors (such as guarding and bracing that may become dysfunctional over time) and increase healthy behaviors (such as physical exercise and meaningful social activities). The current study explored if personalized virtual movement models (doppelganger avatars), who maximize model-observer similarity in virtual reality (VR), can influence fear of pain, motor avoidance and movement-related pain and function. In a randomized controlled trial, participants with CBP observed and imitated an avatar (AVA, N = 17) or a videotaped model (VID, N = 16) over three sessions, where moving a beverage crate, bending sideward (BS), and rotation in the horizontal plane (RH) were shown. Self-reported pain expectancy, as well as engagement, functional capacity and pain during movements, were analyzed along with range of motion (ROM). The AVA group reported higher engagement with no significant group differences observed in ROM. Pain expectancy increased in AVA but not VID over the sessions. Pain and limitations did not significantly differ. However, we observed a significant moderation effect of group, with prior pain expectancy predicting pain and avoidance in the VID but not in the AVA group. This can be interpreted as an effect of personalized movement models decoupling pain behavior from movement-related fear and pain expectancy. Thus, personalized virtual movement models may provide an additional tool for exposure and exercise treatments in cognitive-behavioral treatment approaches to CBP.

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Exploring Virtual Doppelgangers as Movement Models to Enhance Voluntary Imitation

Cited by 4 publications

References 69 publications

Adding tactile feedback increases avatar ownership and makes virtual reality more effective at reducing pain in a randomized crossover study

Adding tactile feedback increases avatar ownership and makes virtual reality more effective at reducing pain in a randomized crossover study

Reply to Yang and Lu

Effects of personalized movement models in virtual reality on pain expectancy and motor behavior in patients with chronic back pain: a feasibility study

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