Immersive VR eHealth Strategies: VR Games to Treat Schizophrenia Negative Symptoms

Abstract

Schizophrenia is a mental disorder that uses cognitive rehabilitation treatments to help reduce symptoms that cannot be treated with medication. In general, pharmacological treatments are not effective in controlling the negative symptoms of the disease. Negative symptoms include, among other difficulties, decreased motivation and interest in performing simple activities. The available treatment options that use modern technologies still have limitations due to their complexity, lack of development guidelines and other related factors, which prevent better results in controlling the symptoms of the disease and improving the person's quality of life. In this context, the main objective of the present investigation was the study of eHealth strategies that can be used in mental health treatments, in particular, to study the application of Virtual Reality (VR) serious games in the treatment of negative symptoms in patients with of schizophrenia. To achieve that a game engine was used to develop a prototype of a serious VR game that simulates spaces and tasks of daily life activities, proposing problem solving. The prototype allows the stimulation and training of cognitive functions, contributing to the assessment of the patient's cognitive abilities, as well as helping them to overcome negative symptoms. The visualization and interaction with the game is carried out through a VR Head Mounted Display (HMD) and associated controllers, through which the player receives game indications and acts on the elements represented therein. It's hoped that its use on a regular basis will help the person to become more confident, increasing their motivation to go to therapy, with a more positive mindset and accelerating the process of recovering from their normal life. The prototype was tested with 21 participants and the results were mostly positive. From the study carried out and the results obtained, it was possible to identify a set of important characteristics, as well as guidelines, which can help in the development of games in this area. In the future, it is expected to extend the tests performed to patients diagnosed with schizophrenia, and involved in a process of cognitive therapy.