Observational Study on Emotional-Affective States in Neuromuscular Patients Using Recreational Virtual Reality

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Rehabilitation Medicine
• Human-Computer Interaction

Background:

• Neuromuscular diseases (NMDs) significantly impair quality of life due to loss of motor, communicative, and swallowing functions.
• Rehabilitation is critical for NMD patients, and innovative technologies like virtual reality (VR) show promise for improving outcomes.
• VR offers immersive digital experiences that could enhance patient engagement and therapeutic effects during rehabilitation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the impact of an immersive virtual reality (VR) recreational experience on the emotional-affective states of hospitalized patients diagnosed with neuromuscular diseases (NMDs).
• To assess changes in mood, positive and negative affects, state anxiety, and overall emotional state following VR exposure.
• To explore patient responses to VR in terms of arousal, pleasure, and dominance.

Main Methods:

• An observational study involving 38 hospitalized patients (≥16 years) with a clinical/genetic diagnosis of NMDs.
• Participants underwent a recreational VR experience and completed pre- and post-intervention questionnaires, including the PANAS and Self-Assessment Manikin.
• Data analysis focused on changes in emotional-affective states, with stratification by demographic and clinical factors.

Main Results:

• Significant improvements were observed in positive affect (PA) and significant reductions in negative affect (NA) post-VR (p < 0.0001 for both).
• State anxiety levels decreased significantly (p < 0.0001), and overall emotional state improved significantly (p = 0.0004) after the VR experience.
• VR exposure resulted in low arousal (3.87 ± 3.46) and high pleasure (8.37 ± 1.81) and dominance (8.37 ± 1.88) ratings.

Conclusions:

• Immersive virtual reality (VR) recreational experiences can positively impact the emotional well-being of hospitalized patients with neuromuscular diseases (NMDs).
• VR serves as a valuable tool to enhance emotional states, reduce anxiety, and improve the overall experience for NMD patients during hospitalization.
• The findings support the integration of VR technology into NMD patient care to improve quality of life and rehabilitation engagement.