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Virtual street-crossing performance in persons with multiple sclerosis: Feasibility and task performance
M E Stratton1, L A Pilutti1, J A Crowell2
1a Department of Kinesiology and Community Health , University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign , Urbana , Illinois.
Traffic Injury Prevention
|September 8, 2016
Summary
People with multiple sclerosis (MS) show impaired street-crossing abilities in a virtual environment, waiting longer and being less attentive to traffic. This simulated task is feasible for studying pedestrian behavior in MS.
Area of Science:
- Neurology
- Human-computer interaction
- Rehabilitation science
Background:
- Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a neurological condition causing physical and cognitive impairments.
- These deficits may affect the ability to perform everyday tasks, such as safely crossing streets.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the feasibility of a simulated street-crossing task for individuals with MS.
- To compare street-crossing performance between individuals with MS and healthy controls.
Main Methods:
- 26 participants with MS and 19 controls completed a virtual street-crossing task with 40 trials.
- Two conditions were tested: no distraction and a phone conversation distraction.
- Task feasibility was measured by completion rates and adverse events; performance metrics included crossing times and attentiveness.
Main Results:
- The virtual street-crossing task was feasible for participants with MS (90% completion, no adverse events).
- Individuals with MS demonstrated impaired performance, waiting longer, showing less traffic attention, and crossing closer to vehicles compared to controls.
- Distraction affected all participants, but there were no significant group-by-condition interactions.
Conclusions:
- A virtual street-crossing task is a feasible method for assessing pedestrian behavior in individuals with mild to moderate MS.
- Virtual reality provides a safe and effective environment to study street-crossing performance in MS.
- While MS impairs street-crossing, individuals with MS are not more vulnerable to distraction during this task.
