Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, Republic of Korea.
Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
J Med Internet Res. 2023 Feb 24;25:e43634. doi: 10.2196/43634.
Maternal-fetal attachment (MFA) has been reported to be associated with the postpartum mother-infant relationship. Seeing the fetus through ultrasound might influence MFA, and the effect could be increased by more realistic images, such as those generated in virtual reality (VR).
The aim was to determine the effect of fetal images generated in VR on MFA and depressive symptoms through a prenatal-coaching mobile app.
This 2-arm parallel randomized controlled trial involved a total of 80 pregnant women. Eligible women were randomly assigned to either a mobile app-only group (n=40) or an app plus VR group (n=40). The VR group experienced their own baby's images generated in VR based on images obtained from fetal ultrasonography. The prenatal-coaching mobile app recommended health behavior for the pregnant women according to gestational age, provided feedback on entered data for maternal weight, blood pressure, and glucose levels, and included a private diary service for fetal ultrasound images. Both groups received the same app, but the VR group also viewed fetal images produced in VR; these images were stored in the app. All participants filled out questionnaires to assess MFA, depressive symptoms, and other basic medical information. The questionnaires were filled out again after the interventions.
Basic demographic data were comparable between the 2 groups. Most of the assessments showed comparable results for the 2 groups, but the mean score to assess interaction with the fetus was significantly higher for the VR group than the control group (0.4 vs 0.1, P=.004). The proportion of participants with an increased score for this category after the intervention was significantly higher in the VR group than the control group (43% vs 13%, P=.005). The feedback questionnaire revealed that scores for the degree of perception of fetal appearance all increased after the intervention in the VR group.
The use of a mobile app with fetal images in VR significantly increased maternal interaction with the fetus.
ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04942197; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04942197.
母婴依恋（MFA）已被报道与产后母婴关系有关。通过超声观察胎儿可能会影响母婴依恋，而更逼真的图像，如虚拟现实（VR）中生成的图像，可能会增加这种影响。
本研究旨在通过产前辅导移动应用程序，确定 VR 中生成的胎儿图像对母婴依恋和抑郁症状的影响。
这是一项 2 臂平行随机对照试验，共纳入 80 名孕妇。符合条件的孕妇被随机分配到移动应用程序组（n=40）或移动应用程序加 VR 组（n=40）。VR 组通过胎儿超声图像获得自己婴儿的 VR 图像。产前辅导移动应用程序根据孕妇的孕周推荐健康行为，为孕妇输入的体重、血压和血糖水平数据提供反馈，并为胎儿超声图像提供私人日记服务。两组都使用相同的应用程序，但 VR 组还观看了 VR 中生成的胎儿图像；这些图像存储在应用程序中。所有参与者都填写了评估母婴依恋、抑郁症状和其他基本医疗信息的问卷。干预后再次填写问卷。
两组的基本人口统计学数据相似。大多数评估结果在两组之间相似，但评估与胎儿互动的平均得分 VR 组明显高于对照组（0.4 对 0.1，P=.004）。干预后，VR 组中该类别评分增加的参与者比例明显高于对照组（43%对 13%，P=.005）。反馈问卷显示，VR 组在干预后对胎儿外观感知程度的评分均有所提高。
使用带 VR 中胎儿图像的移动应用程序显著增加了母亲与胎儿的互动。
ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04942197；https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04942197。
