The effect of virtual reality program on the cognitive function and balance of the people with mild cognitive impairment

Abstract

[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of a virtual reality (VR) program on cognitive function and balance in the elderly with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) attending G welfare center in Gurye. [Subjects and Methods] Twenty-four patients with MCI were studied. The patients were exposed to the VR program for 30 min per experiment, which was conducted 20 times for four weeks. [Results] The cognitive function and balancing ability of the experimental group, when compared to the control group, showed a statistically significant increase in Visual Span Test (VST), Word Color Test (WCT), and Limit of Stability (LOS), which are the sub-categories of CNT 4.0, after the exposure to the program. In all test categories, the experimental group exhibited statistically significant differences compared to the control group. [Conclusion] Thus, the VR program is an effective intervention for the elderly with MCI.

Rehabilitative Effects of Virtual Reality Technology for Mild Cognitive Impairment: A Systematic Review With Meta-Analysis

“…This suggests that, as a new intervention method, research on the cognitive benefits of VR technology to MCI patients is still in its infancy. Of the 15 studies, two studies were conducted in China (Wang and Lv, 2016 ; Hu et al, 2018 ), two in Taiwan (Liao Y. et al, 2019 ; Liao Y. Y. et al, 2019 ; Yang et al, 2019 ), two in the United States (Hughes et al, 2014 ; Schwenk et al, 2016 ), four in South Korea (Hwang and Lee, 2017 ; Hwang and Park, 2018 ; Choi and Lee, 2019 ; Park et al, 2019 ), and one study each in Italy (Optale et al, 2010 ), Belgium (Delbroek et al, 2017 ), Hongkong (Man et al, 2012 ), and Pakistan (Amjad et al, 2018 ). A total of 612 MCI patients were included in our analysis (age range, 59.61–87.5; one study Amjad et al, 2018 did not report the age).…”

“…MMSE is the most widely used tool for assessing the overall cognitive function, while MoCA is a brief tool that can test the cognitive function more comprehensively and is more sensitive to testing MCI (Nasreddine et al, 2005). When examining an individual experiment, no significant difference was found in seven studies (Man et al, 2012;Hughes et al, 2014;Schwenk et al, 2016;Delbroek et al, 2017;Hwang and Lee, 2017;Yang et al, 2019), possibly owing to the VR group and the active control group. The improvement of global cognitive function in the VR group may be related to the reduction of brain activation in the prefrontal region .…”

“…Indeed, MCI is a significant risk factor for Alzheimer disease (AD). Among the elderly with average cognitive ability, the incidence rate of AD is about 1% annually, while that among MCI patients is as high as 14% (Hwang and Lee, 2017 ). Studies also report that the prevalence of MCI and AD will continue to increase (Realdon et al, 2016 ).…”

Current Cognition Tests, Potential Virtual Reality Applications, and Serious Games in Cognitive Assessment and Non-Pharmacological Therapy for Neurocognitive Disorders

“…A control group enrolled in traditional therapy sessions saw no significant improvement [ 81 ]. Hwang et al utilized a VR training program on 24 older persons with mild NCD, finding that balance and cognitive test scores were improved relative to controls, though details of the VR training program used are unclear [ 82 ]. Htut et al found that a virtual reality video-game-based exercise, which is less beneficial than standard physical activity in assessments of physical ability but better than controls, can also simultaneously improve cognitive function [ 83 ].…”

“…Patient performance data on tasks can be easily stored in the cloud for analysis. Furthermore, users of some VR training programs describe them as “fun”, which can encourage adherence to a VR-based cognitive training program [ 82 ], and VR exercise programs are more well received than standard physical activity regimens [ 83 ]. As noted previously, virtual reality exercise allows for the easy integration of a cognitive component into the exercise [ 92 ], which can provide tandem physical and cognitive benefits that perhaps take advantage of the promotion of neuroplastic processes induced by exercise [ 92 , 93 ].…”