Treatment of Phobia Through Virtual Reality

Phobias and mental disorders are quite widespread in Pakistan. There are several rehabilitation centers where these phobias may be cured. Treatment for phobias can take many forms, including exposure therapy, relaxation techniques, and/or short-term pharmacotherapy.  One of the most commonly us

Project Title

Treatment of Phobia Through Virtual Reality

Project Area of Specialization

Augmented and Virtual Reality

Project Summary

Phobias and mental disorders are quite widespread in Pakistan. There are several rehabilitation centers where these phobias may be cured. Treatment for phobias can take many forms, including exposure therapy, relaxation techniques, and/or short-term pharmacotherapy.  One of the most commonly used methods which are used to treat these phobias is CBT (i.e. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy), which is basically psychotherapy. With the enhancement of technology, Virtual Reality Therapy (VRT) was introduced as another way to deal with phobias & mental illness. Virtual Reality Therapy removed a lot of barriers that were present in CBT. Unfortunately, there are very limited integrated systems offered which are related to the market field of VR. The foundation of this project is basically centered on the application of technology in the health care business. VR appears to be the most important technology in the perspective of several health practitioners. VR simulations have been used successfully to treat patients with diseases such as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), acute pain from burns, and phobias or anxieties for over 20 years. Patients in this sort of treatment are exposed to real-world stimuli that caused their depressed reactions, allowing them to recover, and this technique has been shown to be clinically useful. Such a rehabilitation system for phobia therapy does not exist, at least not in Pakistan, according to the experts, and it may be adapted into a marketable product and a homemade version of the product/software.

Project Objectives

•    The main goal is to provide a virtual reality-based rehabilitation center where phobia patients can receive proper treatment and training facilities, their data can be monitored after significant training, and the system is capable of improving the quality and reducing stress anxiety by using virtual programs.
•    To provide a virtual reality-based three-dimensional platform where phobia patients can interact with actual or real-world circumstances and react accordingly.
•    To provide a platform for phobia patients to receive appropriate treatment and training through VRET.
•    To evaluate results using subjective parameters such as the Presence Questionnaire (PQ) and Body Sensation Questionnaires (BSQ), and to test the suggested method on a variety of phobia patients.

Project Implementation Method

The implementation of the project begins by developing prototypes using Unity 3D in combination with C#. The prototype employs a variety of assets and models to make the environment more appealing and interactive. The asset store will be used to obtain assets (buildings, bridges, mountains, roads, water, and so on). After that, the configuration of buttons will be done in order to move from one scene to another. Finally, the final stage is to launch the software in order to provide therapy to the patients. The patients would be gradually exposed to the feared object, and as time progresses the feared level of the subject would be reduced to some level by repeating the therapy.

Benefits of the Project

• In terms of proportionality, virtual reality exposure therapy outperforms imaginal exposure and is a more practical alternative to in-vivo exposure. 
• Cognitive behavioral therapy and in-person exposure are combined to provide the best of both worlds. 
• Virtual reality attempts to immerse the user by transporting them to a different location while remaining physically stationary, but the program can be stopped if the user becomes overly upset. 
• We can treat anxiety disorders by gradually exposing the patient to the source of fear in a safe and realistic setting that ensures the patient's safety by using images, simulations, videos, or presenting the phobia object without a direct exposition to the real situation.

Technical Details of Final Deliverable

The final deliverable will have the following components: 
1. A software integrated with an Immersive VR HMD that projects the virtual reality environment in front of the patient's eyes, allowing him or her to focus on the display without distraction, and the displayed environment can reflect for changing the patient's viewpoints.
2. A computer program (software) that: 
a) Attempts to immerse the person in a virtual setting by gradually exposing the person to the source of fear.
b) Automatically improves the quality and reduces stress anxiety by using virtual programs.

Final Deliverable of the Project

HW/SW integrated system

Core Industry

Medical

Other Industries

Education , Health

Core Technology

Augmented & Virtual Reality

Other Technologies

Wearables and Implantables

Sustainable Development Goals

Good Health and Well-Being for People

Required Resources

If you need this project, please contact me on contact@adikhanofficial.com