Neuroimaging Biomarkers for Assessing Brain Mechanisms Mediating Virtual Reality Anxiety and Pain Management

Summary

The objective of this study is to develop central nervous system (CNS) biomarkers of pain experienced during medical procedures and pain relief induced by Virtual Reality Pain Alleviation Therapy (VR-PAT). The study team plans to use innovative functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to identify and quantify the targeted CNS biomarkers. The ultimate goal of this project is to optimize the CNS biomarkers for predicting and/or monitoring response to virtual reality (VR)-based pain reduction approaches for pain management in clinical trials. 20 healthy children will be recruited for a 1-hour research visit where they will wear a blood pressure cuff to simulate pain and an fNIRS neuroimaging device while playing an immersive/engaging VR game, a passive VR video, and an iPad game.

Description

Eligibility

Age range

6–17 years

Sex

All

Healthy volunteers

Yes

Interventions

• Other
  Active VR-PAT

  Virtual Reality Pain Alleviation Tool (VR-PAT) hosted on a Pico Neo 3 Pro Eye headset. Both engagement and immersion.

• Other
  Passive VR-PAT

  VR-PAT hosted on a Pico Neo 3 Pro Eye headset, with the active game participation removed. Immersion with engagement removed.

• Other
  iPad

  VR-PAT hosted on an Apple iPad. Engagement with immersion removed.

Location