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Virtual reality (VR) stands as an innovative technology transforming our interactions with the digital world. Its integration into health care has proven advantageous for both patients and health care providers across multiple levels and modalities. Given that VR is becoming increasingly accessible and prevalent, health care providers should explore incorporating the technology into their practices, particularly within the pediatric population, which is becoming progressively more accustomed to the technology. This topic synopsis provides a broad discussion of the current literature, exploring current and probable future applications of VR in pediatric patient care, particularly in improving the hospital experience, facilitating education during hospitalizations, providing an alternative to pharmacological therapy for pain management, and enhancing mental health care practices.
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BACKGROUND: Musculoskeletal pain is a prevalent concern among diverse populations, from the average individual to the elite athlete. Handheld percussive massage therapy devices like massage guns have gained much popularity in both medical and athletic settings. Its application has been prominently recognized in injury prevention and rehabilitation. The expansion of the market to provide handheld percussive therapy devices with varying features and price points has encouraged professional and novice use. While percussive therapy holds similarities to more studied therapeutic modalities, like vibration therapy and soft tissue mobilization, there is limited evidence-based information on the indications and contraindications. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to use a qualitative analysis of consumer perceptions to understand the perceived therapeutic potential of percussive massage therapy as a home-based intervention for musculoskeletal concerns of everyday users and elite athletes. Additionally, we aim to gain insight on valuable characteristics supporting its therapeutic potential as well as pertinent limitations. METHODS: The TOLOCO massage gun (TOLOCO) was identified as the best-selling percussive massage therapy device on Amazon. We performed an inductive thematic qualitative analysis on the top 100 positive comments and the top 100 critical comments of the device between June 2020 and April 2023 to determine 4 relevant themes. RESULTS: The 4 themes identified upon qualitative analysis were pain management, versatility, accessibility, and safety and user education. Consumer reviews indicated use for this percussive therapy device in adolescents, adults, and older people across a spectrum of activity levels. Consumers reported the therapeutic potential of percussive massage therapy in managing wide-ranging musculoskeletal concerns like acute pain, chronic pain, nonsurgical injury rehabilitation, postsurgical injury rehabilitation, and injury prevention. Consumers highlighted the versatility of the device to address person-specific needs as a key feature in supporting its perceived therapeutic benefits. Additionally, consumers frequently commented on the affordability and availability of this device to increase accessibility to home-based care. Some critical reviews emphasized a concern for the quality of the device itself. However, this concern did not translate to the overall modality of percussive massage therapy. Of note, despite strong approval for its therapeutic potential, consumer reviews lacked evidence-based insights on appropriate usage. CONCLUSIONS: Home-based percussive massage therapy holds value with its perceived efficacy in pain management for acute and chronic conditions, as well as in injury prevention and rehabilitation. As a low-cost and readily available device for everyday users and high-performing athletes, percussive massage therapy works toward establishing increased health care accessibility and optimizing health care usage. This home-based intervention can serve to reduce the significant personal and economic burden of prevalent musculoskeletal concerns. However, the limited scientific research on percussive massage therapy raises concerns about the lack of evidence-based care and indicates the need for future studies.
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Amid a worldwide pandemic in the setting of an era of rapidly developing technologies, we turn now to the novel and exciting endeavor of pioneering the metaverse. Described as the conglomeration of augmented reality, virtual reality, and artificial intelligence, the metaverse has widespread applications in multiple settings, including revolutionizing health care. It also holds the potential to transform geriatric medicine, introducing new dimensions through which we can prevent social isolation, encourage health and well-being, and offer a new dimension through which we manage chronic disease. Although it is still a futuristic and novel technology, the metaverse's realization may indeed be closer than we think.
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Social media has redesigned the landscape of human interaction, and data obtained through these platforms are promising for schizophrenia diagnosis and management. Recent research shows mounting evidence that machine learning analysis of social media content is capable of not only differentiating schizophrenia patients from healthy controls, but also predicting conversion to psychosis and symptom exacerbations. Novel platforms such as Horyzons show promise for improving social functioning and providing timely access to therapeutic resources. Social media is also a considerable means to assess and lessen the stigma surrounding schizophrenia. Herein, the relevant literature pertaining to social media and its clinical applications in schizophrenia over the past five years are summarized, followed by a discussion centered on user feedback to highlight future directions. Social media provides valuable contributions to a multifaceted digital phenotype that may improve schizophrenia care in the near future.