Department of Bioengineering, Christian Medical College, Bagayam, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, India.
Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Physiotherapy Unit, Christian Medical College, Bagayam, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, India.
J Vestib Res. 2019;29(2-3):147-160. doi: 10.3233/VES-190660.
BACKGROUNDVestibular dysfunctions result in a wide range of impairments and can have debilitating consequences on a person's day-to-day activities. Conventional vestibular rehabilitation is effective but suffers from poor therapy compliance due to boredom. Virtual reality technology can make training more engaging and allow precise quantification of the training process. However, most existing technologies for vestibular rehabilitation are expensive and not suitable for use in patients' homes and most clinics. In this pilot study, we developed and evaluated the usability of a smartphone-based head-mounted display (HMD) for vestibular rehabilitation and quantified the simulator sickness induced by the system.METHODSTwo adaptive training games were developed to train discrete and rhythmic head movements in the pitch and yaw planes. The usability and simulator sickness associated with the system were evaluated in a single testing session on healthy subjects and patients with unilateral vestibular dysfunction. Additionally, the head movement kinematics measured during training was also analyzed using different movement quality measures.RESULTSA total of 15 healthy subjects and 15 patients underwent testing with the system. Both groups found the system to be highly usable (>80 score on the system usability scale). Following 20-30 min training with the system, healthy subjects reported minimal simulator sickness symptoms. On the other hand, patients reported a higher incidence rate for symptoms, which could have been the result of their vestibular condition.CONCLUSIONThe current study demonstrated the usability and safety of a smartphone-based system for vestibular rehabilitation. The system is compact, and affordable thus has the potential to become an excellent tool for home-based vestibular rehabilitation.
背景
前庭功能障碍会导致广泛的损伤，并对人的日常活动产生严重的影响。传统的前庭康复治疗方法有效，但由于枯燥而导致治疗依从性差。虚拟现实技术可以使训练更具吸引力，并能精确量化训练过程。然而，大多数现有的前庭康复技术都很昂贵，不适合在患者家中和大多数诊所使用。在这项初步研究中，我们开发并评估了一款基于智能手机的头戴式显示器（HMD）用于前庭康复的可用性，并量化了该系统引起的模拟器病。
方法
开发了两个自适应训练游戏，以训练俯仰和偏航平面中的离散和有节奏的头部运动。在健康受试者和单侧前庭功能障碍患者的单次测试中，评估了系统的可用性和与系统相关的模拟器病。此外，还使用不同的运动质量指标分析了训练过程中测量的头部运动运动学。
结果
共有 15 名健康受试者和 15 名患者接受了该系统的测试。两组受试者均认为该系统具有高度可用性（系统可用性量表得分>80）。在使用该系统进行 20-30 分钟的训练后，健康受试者报告仅有轻微的模拟器病症状。另一方面，患者报告的症状发生率更高，这可能是他们的前庭状况所致。
结论
本研究表明，基于智能手机的前庭康复系统具有可用性和安全性。该系统紧凑且价格合理，因此有可能成为家庭前庭康复的优秀工具。
