U.S. soldiers will be among the first to use a new physical therapy technology being developed at
Central Michigan University, as the team working on it hopes virtual reality gaming platforms can be translated to helpful therapy for brain injuries.
The U.S. Department of Defense provided a $391,000 grant to design virtual reality gaming therapy that can help the thousands of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans with traumatic brain injuries. The formerly unusual injury has become more prevalent among returning soldiers, as they can often result from roadside bomb blasts. Shock waves from such bombs can cause brain damage and mental and physical impairment, even when there are no visible injuries.
CMU physical therapy professor Ksenia Ustinova says the use of virtual reality is just coming on the rehabilitation scene, but it has great potential to help TBI patients regain their previous functionality.
"Virtual reality is a relatively new form of rehabilitation, and we will be designing a series of immersive 3D games to help soldiers work on both motor and cognitive abilities," Ustinova says.
The team this fall will develop a series of games that allow soldiers to virtually perform tasks they otherwise couldn't do, and repeat them over and over to retrain and recondition their muscles and brains. They will be using large-screen 3D TVs, laptops, and motion capture systems to create the virtual environment.
Then, soldiers with TBIs will be recruited to test the therapy through next spring, and the ultimate goal is to have the series of games available for free download to patients who could benefit.
Writer: Sam EgglestonSource: Ksenia Ustinova, Central Michigan University
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