The Brain Mechanisms of Music Stimulation, Motor Observation, and Motor Imagination in Virtual Reality Techniques: A Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy Study.

Virtual reality (VR) has gained popularity in recent years, integrating with conventional music stimulation (MS), action observation (AO), and motor imagination (MI). It offers promising opportunities for developing innovative rehabilitation treatments, though the mechanisms underlying these effects remain unclear. This study aims to compare brain activation and network mechanisms following the fusion of MS, AO, and MI with VR. Fifty healthy participants were recruited and underwent functional near-infrared spectroscopy synchronization with three VR tasks: MS (VRMS), AO (VRAO), and MI (VRMI). The results indicate that VRMS significantly enhances functional connectivity of the bilateral primary sensory cortex (S1), premotor cortex, and supplementary motor area (PM&SMA) compared with VRAO and VRMI. Furthermore, the interaction among the bilateral PM&SMA, right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, and right primary motor cortex (M1) regions is notably stronger with VRMS than with the other VR tasks. These findings elucidate the brain activation and network characteristics of the three VR tasks, highlighting VRMS's potential in boosting the functional interaction among brain regions. Future research should explore additional brain regions, broader diseased brain samples, and alternative brain-stimulation effects of VRMS.