EFFECTIVENESS AND ADVERSE EFFECTS OF IMMERSIVE TECHNOLOGIES USED FOR REHABILITATION OF PATIENTS WITH NON-SPECIFIC NECK PAIN: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW

TL;DR

This study reviews how well virtual reality helps people with neck pain and finds it may be useful but needs more research.

Contribution

A systematic review of immersive technologies for non-specific neck pain rehabilitation, highlighting gaps in safety data.

Findings

VR therapy showed improvements in pain and range of motion in some studies.

Safety and adverse effects of VR therapy remain insufficiently studied.

VR may be as effective as current treatments but lacks consistent clinical evidence.

Abstract

The aim of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of immersive technologies in the rehabilitation of patients with non-specific neck pain and identify any potential side effects associated with their use.

Systematic review.

Individuals with non-specific neck pain.

A systematic literature search of randomized controlled trials was conducted using Medline (PubMed), Embase (Ovid), Scopus, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, WHO, Pedro, and ClinicalTrials.gov. Risk of bias was assessed with Cochrane Risk of Bias tool.

Five studies with a total of 203 participants (129 women, 74 men) were included in the review. In most studies, both the virtual reality (VR) and control groups demonstrated improvement in pain, functioning related to neck pain, and range of motion. Two cases found the virtual reality group to demonstrate greater improvements in pain and range of motion (for some movements), but not in function. The studies analysed lack much information regarding the applicability of VR therapy.

The data are promising and suggest that VR therapy may have benefits in the rehabilitation of patients with non-specific neck pain. Data on the safety of therapy and adverse events are insufficient to draw any conclusions.

Non-specific neck pain syndrome is a widespread problem in the adult population, requiring frequent preventive and rehabilitation interventions. The preferred treatment involves a combination of manual therapy, exercise, and education. New possibilities lie in the use of virtual reality. This study reviews the evidence to assess the feasibility, effectiveness, clinical applicability, and potential adverse effects of using these interventions. The data are promising and may indicate that virtual reality may be as beneficial in the rehabilitation of patients with non-specific neck pain as current treatments. However, the studies are very different from each other and the lack of clinical data on safety and adverse events limit our ability to recommend it for clinical practice. There is considerable need for further evidence on the effectiveness and harm of VR-based therapy for neck pain.

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