Changes in cerebral blood flow during forward and backward walking with speed misperception generated by virtual...

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Virtual Reality Studies
• Human Movement Analysis

Background:

• Virtual reality (VR) offers immersive experiences but can create sensory discrepancies.
• Discrepancies between perceived and actual movement, such as walking speed, may impact brain function.
• Understanding the neural correlates of VR-induced sensory conflict is crucial for designing effective VR applications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the impact of VR-induced walking speed misperception on brain activity.
• To compare the effects of forward and backward walking within VR on cerebral blood flow.
• To identify specific brain regions involved in processing altered sensory information during VR locomotion.

Main Methods:

• Twenty healthy young adults participated in the study.
• Participants walked at 1 km/h while viewing VR videos of walking at 3 km/h to induce a speed mismatch.
• Cerebral blood flow, specifically oxyhemoglobin levels in the prefrontal cortex, was measured using optical imaging during VR exposure.

Main Results:

• A significant increase in cerebral blood flow was observed in the prefrontal cortex after VR walking.
• This increase was particularly pronounced during backward walking in VR, suggesting a greater neural response to this condition.
• The right prefrontal cortex showed a more substantial change in oxyhemoglobin levels during backward walking.

Conclusions:

• Backward walking in VR, due to the induced speed misperception, represents an unusual motor experience.
• Voluntary motor adjustment by the cerebral cortex is necessary to process this unusual sensory input.
• The findings suggest activation of the prefrontal cortex is involved in adapting to VR-induced locomotion discrepancies.