Virtual Reality: Digital Treatment for Real Pain

 

Amanda Greene lives with pain.

Greene says her pain comes from lupus, an autoimmune disease that attacks her organs and tissues.

"If I don't have nerve pain, I might have joint¹ pain. If I'm not having joint pain, I might have headaches."

She tried taking medicine and other treatments, but she suffered an allergic² reaction to opioids, a strong pain killer³.

Now Amanda Greene is trying something different. It is called “virtual reality” therapy.

Virtual reality, or VR, is growing in popularity in video gaming and some training programs. The person wears special equipment that covers the eyes. Inside, he or she sees images and hears sounds coming from a computer program. The experience makes people feel as if they are in the picture they are watching.

For Greene, virtual experience helped her feel more at ease and trained her to breathe in a special way. She saw a tree, crystals, and her breath as she was guided to breathe in and out.

"It worked. It works for me."

VR in hospitals and medical centers

Brennan Spiegel is a doctor who treats patients with stomach pain and intestinal⁴ problems. He says these disorders⁵ are sometimes connected to a person’s mental health. VR can help, he explains, by changing the messages in the brain and nervous system.

Spiegel is the director of Health Services Research at Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles, California. He heads Cedars-Sinai’s virtual reality program, where more than 2,500 patients have been treated.

"Virtual reality can reduce pain, can reduce blood pressure, and now we're looking to see can it do really important things, like reduce the need for opioids."

Opioid abuse has led to many deaths across the United States.

But, unlike opioids, Spiegel does not think patients seeking pain relief would become physically⁶ dependent on VR therapy. Researchers are looking at possible side effects. For some patients, less than 10 percent, they may feel off-balance and sick to their stomach when wearing the VR headset.

Spiegel said more than 100 hospitals nationwide are using VR to help patients control pain and nervousness. He added that more countries are taking an interest in VR, and doctors are beginning to develop policies on how to use the technology in health care.

Swamy Venuturupalli is a doctor and the founder⁷ of Attune⁸ Health, a center treating patients with autoimmune diseases. He is studying how visual technology can reduce the pain his patients feel. VR experiences may include swimming with dolphins and meditation⁹ exercises in front of a campfire.

Venuturupalli says VR does more than just distract patients who are in pain. It can train them to learn deep breathing exercises. And it can help them with biofeedback, the ability to control things like heartbeat and brain waves with your mind.

VR pharmacy¹⁰ and centers

A business called AppliedVR is testing virtual reality to see how it may help people deal with their pain. Its president, Josh Sackman, says his company is developing programs that will be helpful to patients of different ages, personalities¹¹ and interests. He says the goal is to create a VR pharmacy to serve them all.

Sackman told VOA he has seen an improvement in the medical world’s understanding of VR over the past three years. And, he says, with patients using VR, you see a physical change in a short time as they go from someone “in terrible pain, stressed,” to relaxed.

Brennan Spiegel says the aim is not to have the patients stay in their virtual world forever. The idea, he says, is for people to learn in VR that they can control their body, and that the mind matters. And then, people can use those skills when they need it, in the real world.

I’m Anne Ball.

Words in This Story

autoimmune -adj. of, relating to, or caused by autoantibodies or T cells that attack molecules¹², cells, or tissues of the organism producing them?

allergic -adj. of or relating to a medical condition that causes someone to become sick after eating, touching¹³, or breathing something that is harmless to most people?

therapy -n. the treatment of physical or mental illnesses?

crystal -n. a clear hard mineral that is either colorless or very light in color and that is used in making jewelry¹⁴?

meditation -n. the act or process of spending time in quiet thought : the act or process of meditating¹⁵?

distract -v. to cause (someone) to stop thinking about or paying attention to someone or something and to think about or pay attention to someone or something else instead?

pharmacy -n. a store or part of a store in which drugs and medicines are prepared and sold?

relax -v. to stop feeling nervous or worried

1 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

2 allergic   

adj.过敏的，变态的

参考例句：

• Alice is allergic to the fur of cats.艾丽斯对猫的皮毛过敏。
• Many people are allergic to airborne pollutants such as pollen.许多人对空气传播的污染物过敏，比如花粉。

3 killer   

n.杀人者，杀人犯，杀手，屠杀者

参考例句：

• Heart attacks have become Britain's No.1 killer disease.心脏病已成为英国的头号致命疾病。
• The bulk of the evidence points to him as her killer.大量证据证明是他杀死她的。

4 intestinal   

adj.肠的；肠壁；肠道细菌

参考例句：

• A few other conditions are in high intestinal obstruction. 其它少数情况是高位肠梗阻。 来自辞典例句
• This complication has occasionally occurred following the use of intestinal antiseptics. 这种并发症偶而发生在使用肠道抗菌剂上。 来自辞典例句

5 disorders   

n.混乱( disorder的名词复数 )；凌乱；骚乱；（身心、机能）失调

参考例句：

• Reports of anorexia and other eating disorders are on the increase. 据报告，厌食症和其他饮食方面的功能紊乱发生率正在不断增长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The announcement led to violent civil disorders. 这项宣布引起剧烈的骚乱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 physically   

adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律

参考例句：

• He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
• Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。

7 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

8 attune   

v.使调和

参考例句：

• His ear is still attune to the sound of the London suburb.他的耳朵对伦敦郊区的语音仍然一听就能辨别。
• Our ears are becoming attuned to the noise of the new factory nearby.我们的耳朵逐渐适应了附近新工厂的噪声。

9 meditation   

n.熟虑，（尤指宗教的）默想，沉思，（pl.）冥想录

参考例句：

• This peaceful garden lends itself to meditation.这个恬静的花园适于冥想。
• I'm sorry to interrupt your meditation.很抱歉，我打断了你的沉思。

10 pharmacy   

n.药房，药剂学，制药业，配药业，一批备用药品

参考例句：

• She works at the pharmacy.她在药房工作。
• Modern pharmacy has solved the problem of sleeplessness.现代制药学已经解决了失眠问题。

11 personalities   

n. 诽谤，（对某人容貌、性格等所进行的）人身攻击； 人身攻击；人格, 个性, 名人( personality的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There seemed to be a degree of personalities in her remarks.她话里有些人身攻击的成分。
• Personalities are not in good taste in general conversation.在一般的谈话中诽谤他人是不高尚的。

12 molecules   

分子( molecule的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The structure of molecules can be seen under an electron microscope. 分子的结构可在电子显微镜下观察到。
• Inside the reactor the large molecules are cracked into smaller molecules. 在反应堆里，大分子裂变为小分子。

13 touching   

adj.动人的，使人感伤的

参考例句：

• It was a touching sight.这是一幅动人的景象。
• His letter was touching.他的信很感人。

14 jewelry   

n.（jewllery）（总称）珠宝

参考例句：

• The burglars walked off with all my jewelry.夜盗偷走了我的全部珠宝。
• Jewelry and lace are mostly feminine belongings.珠宝和花边多数是女性用品。

15 meditating   

a.沉思的，冥想的

参考例句：

• They were meditating revenge. 他们在谋划进行报复。
• The congressman is meditating a reply to his critics. 这位国会议员正在考虑给他的批评者一个答复。