Development and proof of concept of an immersive virtual reality system to evaluate near and far space neglect in individuals after stroke: A brief report
Affiliations: [a] Research Institute for Science and Engineering, Waseda University, Tokyo Japan | [b] Department of Modern Mechanical Engineering, Waseda University, Tokyo, Japan
| [c] Department of Rehabilitation, Sonoda Rehabilitation Hospital, Tokyo, Japan
| [d] Graduate School of Creative Science and Engineering, Waseda University, Tokyo, Japan
Correspondence:
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Address for correspondence: Kazuhiro Yasuda, Research Institute for Science and Engineering, Waseda University, 3-4-1 Okubo, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 169-8555, Japan. Tel.: +81 3 3203 7613; E-mail: kazuhiro-yasuda@aoni.waseda.jp.
Abstract: BACKGROUND:Unilateral spatial neglect (USN) is defined as impaired attention to sensory stimuli on one side. The symptoms can exist for near and far spaces combined or independently. Thus, it is important to evaluate both possibilities in a clinical environment. OBJECTIVE:To develop a tractable immersive virtual reality (iVR) system that can evaluate both near and far space neglect along with a proof of concept study to determine whether near and far spatial neglect could be described in an actual patient with USN. METHODS:An object-detecting task was developed in a three-dimensional virtual reality space. The examiner recorded the positional data of objects that were recognized by the patient with USN using coordinate data. RESULTS:The system could be used to detect near and far space neglects in a patient with USN. No side effects such as vertigo were seen during measurement. This patient showed that the angle for recognition was significantly larger for near space than far space, and exhibited a tendency for the angle of recognition to increase with lower height. CONCLUSIONS:Our proof of concept study indicated the possibility of applying an evaluation system that separates far and near space neglect using iVR.
