Development of a new immersive virtual reality (VR) headset-based dexterity training for patients with multiple sclerosis: Clinical and technical aspects.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Impaired manual dexterity is frequent and disabling in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), affecting activities of daily living and quality of life. OBJECTIVE: To develop a new immersive virtual-reality (VR) headset-based dexterity training to improve impaired manual dexterity in persons with MS (pwMS) while being feasible and usable in a home-based setting. METHODS: The training intervention was tailored to the specific group of pwMS by implementing a simple and intuitive application with regard to hardware and software. To be efficacious, the training intervention covers the main functions of the hands and arm relevant for use in everyday life. RESULTS: Taking clinical, feasibility, usability as well as technical aspects with regard to hardware and software into account, six different training exercises using hand tracking technology were developed on the Meta quest 2 using Unity. CONCLUSION: We report the developmental process of a new immersive virtual VR headset-based dexterity training for pwMS implementing clinical and technical aspects. Good feasibility, usability, and patient satisfaction was already shown in a feasibility study qualifying this training intervention for further efficacy trials.