Feasibility, Acceptability, and Usability of a Tele-rehabilitation Combining Immersive Virtual Reality Exercises and Therapeutic Education for Chronic Non-specific Neck Pain

Summary

Background: Several randomized controlled trials have already investigated the efficacy of virtual reality treatment for chronic neck pain, however no study to date has investigated multimodal tele-rehabilitation, combining both specific neck exercises in immersive virtual reality and therapeutic education, in subjects with chronic non-specific neck pain.

Objectives: The primary objective of this mixed-methods pilot study is to determine the feasibility, acceptability, and usability of tele-rehabilitation combining immersive virtual reality exercises and therapeutic education in people with chronic non-specific neck pain. Secondary objectives are: 1) to investigate changes in clinical outcomes (range of motion, pain intensity, neck disability, illness perceptions, kinesiophobia, impression of change) ; 2) to explore the subjects' experience of tele-rehabilitation.

Methods: The duration of the intervention will be 6 weeks, including 5 virtual reality sessions (15-20 minutes per session, without supervision of the physiotherapist) and 1 teleconsultation session with a physiotherapist (30 minutes per session) per week. Participants will be assessed quantitatively before and after the intervention, and qualitatively after the intervention.

Discussion: Study findings will provide evidence concerning the feasibility, acceptability, and usability of multimodal tele-rehabilitation for chronic non-specific neck pain, using immersive virtual reality. This study may strengthen the scientific evidence for the use of immersive virtual reality at home in the treatment of chronic non-specific neck pain.

Conditions

• Neck Pain

Interventions

DEVICE

Virtual reality

Immersive virtual reality neck exercises targeting relaxation, mobility, control, and speed of movement, using the Pico G2 4K headset.

BEHAVIORAL

Therapeutic education

Several brochures will be given to participants. These brochures will cover the general principles of pain, the persistence of pain, tips for managing chronic non-specific pain, and the use of immersive virtual reality in the rehabilitation of chronic non-specific neck pain. The information provided in the brochures will be discussed with the physiotherapist during the teleconsultations in order to individualize the therapeutic education.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Fonds National de la Recherche Scientifique

  collaborator OTHER

• Université Catholique de Louvain

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Laurent Pitance, PhD · Université Catholique de Louvain

• Gaëtan Stoquart, PhD · Cliniques universitaires Saint-Luc- Université Catholique de Louvain

Study Design

Allocation

NA

Purpose

OTHER

Masking

NONE

Model

SINGLE_GROUP

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2023-06-01

Primary Completion

2024-08-30

Completion

2024-08-30

Countries

• Belgium

Study Locations