The place of virtual reality in the rehabilitation of patients with multiple sclerosis

Abstract

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic autoimmune disease that limits the ability to work and lead an active lifestyle, mostly in young adults. Physical activity, along with drug therapy, is an essential part of the life of a person with MS. In the last decades, rehabilitation of MS patients has made great progress. However, the problem of compliance is still relevant. Virtual reality (VR) based rehabilitation can not only improve the quality of the training process but also increase patient compliance.Objective: to study the literature data on the effectiveness of the techniques of VR in reducing the severity of symptoms of MS and improving the quality of life.Materials and methods. A thorough literature search of the MEDLINE (Pubmed), eLibrary, and Google Schcolar databases was performed. Papers that met two criteria were included in the study: study population – patients with MS; presence of at least one comparison group (standard therapy or no therapy).Results. Based on the results of the analysis, 44 articles were selected. The efficacy of VR in reducing symptoms of MS such as fatigue, balance disturbances, risk factors for falls, mobility, apraxia, impaired hand function was described, as well as the impact on overall quality of life and its components.Conclusions. The VR rehabilitation can have its own place in the general system of physical rehabilitation and also become an effective tool to increase motivation and quality of life at all stages of rehabilitation.

Keywords

• multiple sclerosis
• rehabilitation
• virtual reality