Is it possible to use highly realistic virtual reality in the elderly? A feasibility study with image-based rendering

Abstract

BackgroundVirtual reality (VR) opens up a vast number of possibilities in many domains of therapy. The primary objective of the present study was to evaluate the acceptability for elderly subjects of a VR experience using the image-based rendering virtual environment (IBVE) approach and secondly to test the hypothesis that visual cues using VR may enhance the generation of autobiographical memories.MethodsEighteen healthy volunteers (mean age 68.2 years) presenting memory complaints with a Mini-Mental State Examination score higher than 27 and no history of neuropsychiatric disease were included. Participants were asked to perform an autobiographical fluency task in four conditions. The first condition was a baseline grey screen, the second was a photograph of a well-known location in the participant’s home city (FamPhoto), and the last two conditions displayed VR, ie, a familiar image-based virtual environment (FamIBVE) consisting of an image-based representation of a known landmark square in the center of the city of experimentation (Nice) and an unknown image-based virtual environment (UnknoIBVE), which was captured in a public housing neighborhood containing unrecognizable building fronts. After each of the four experimental conditions, participants filled in self-report questionnaires to assess the task acceptability (levels of emotion, motivation, security, fatigue, and familiarity). CyberSickness and Presence questionnaires were also assessed after the two VR conditions. Autobiographical memory was assessed using a verbal fluency task and quality of the recollection was assessed using the “remember/know” procedure.ResultsAll subjects completed the experiment. Sense of security and fatigue were not significantly different between the conditions with and without VR. The FamPhoto condition yielded a higher emotion score than the other conditions (P<0.05). The CyberSickness questionnaire showed that participants did not experience sickness during the experiment across the VR conditions. VR stimulates autobiographical memory, as demonstrated by the increased total number of responses on the autobiographical fluency task and the increased number of conscious recollections of memories for familiar versus unknown scenes (P<0.01).ConclusionThe study indicates that VR using the FamIBVE system is well tolerated by the elderly. VR can also stimulate recollections of autobiographical memory and convey familiarity of a given scene, which is an essential requirement for use of VR during reminiscence therapy.

Factors Associated With Virtual Reality Sickness in Head-Mounted Displays: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

“…While scores for nausea and oculomotor subscales were higher for the older adult samples compared with younger samples, they were not statistically significant. Previous research has found inconsistent findings when looking at older samples (Kennedy et al, 2010;Benoit et al, 2015). Even though age has been reported as a user characteristic likely to predict motion sickness (Golding, 2006), the results from this review support previous research that there may be a decline in susceptibility to VR sickness as a person ages (Paillard et al, 2013).…”

“…User characteristics adds another layer of complexity in understanding the relationship between hardware, content and VR sickness. Research on sex and age, have generated mixed findings when it comes to the likelihood of sickness from VR (Cheung and Hofer, 2002;Benoit et al, 2015;Munafo et al, 2017;Arcioni et al, 2018). In reference to age, physiological differences over the lifespan (i.e., visual, vestibular senses) (Bermúdez Rey et al, 2016) may influence the occurrence of VR sickness and symptom profiles.…”

Use of immersive virtual reality to assess episodic memory: A validation study in older adults

“…A few studies have found more frequent cybersickness symptoms in older adults relative to younger ones, although the reported difference appears to be of a relatively small magnitude (Arns & Cerney, 2005;Liu, Watson, & Miyazaki, 1999). However, a more recent study reported no increase in cybersickness symptoms following immersion in older adults (Benoit et al, 2015).…”

“…Interestingly, some results suggest that this may not be the case. In a study led by Benoit et al (2015), participants were presented with a photograph or an image-based VR representation of familiar locations in their home city or new locations and were asked to indicate whether they recognised the location. The motivation level of older adults, which was measured with a homemade questionnaire, was found to be larger for the VR than for the non-VR version of the task, although the difference was non-significant.…”

A methodological framework for exploring the applicability of virtual reality in cognitive disabilities care

“…Furthermore, VR systems for cognitive training concentrate on performing activities that are related to IADL, such as: cooking, driving, shopping, etc. The use of a familiar image-based VE can stimulate recollections of autobiographical memory in healthy elderly subjects, as was 131 recently demonstrated (Benoit et al, 2015). The fact that episodic autobiographical memory is impaired in early stages of AD (Seidl, Lueken, Thomann, Geider, & Schorder, 2011), suggests that using such type of VR systems may be helpful for reminiscence rehabilitation of AD patients.…”