THE metaverse It is a virtual world that allows interaction between people using personalized avatars, as well as circulation through built spaces that simulate reality as we know it.
Researchers from the University of São Paulo (USP) discovered that the metaverse may have another function besides entertainment: helping in the rehabilitation of people with disabilities.
A study published by the group from the School of Arts, Sciences and Humanities showed that in people with cerebral palsy, the application of tasks in virtual reality through telerehabilitation helped with engagement, improved performance and was an option to encourage the practice of activity physical activity, including during the pandemic.
Virtual reality and cerebral palsy
The study on the telerehabilitation of people with cerebral palsy was carried out between March and June 2020 and involved the participation of 44 people. The work was carried out during the period of social isolation caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, which prevented traditional therapy from being carried out.
People with cerebral palsy have motor disorders associated with things like changes in sensation, learning, and communication. With the aim of improving motor performance, participants carried out proposed practices with the remote support of a researcher and the help of a guardian.
One of the activities consisted of collecting colored balls that fell on the computer screen. The participants’ movements were detected by the machine’s camera. During the game, the perception of effort and tiredness of the participants was evaluated.
The scale is based on the sensations felt during exercise, such as muscle fatigue and increased heart and breathing rates. Motor performance, measured by the precision of the movements and the number of right and wrong answers, and the motivation and satisfaction of the participants were also analyzed.
According to the study, the improvement in game performance was not constant. However, the reception of the games by the patients was positive, having been considered fun by the participants, who were interested in continuing to use it in their therapies.
“People like it more, they are more motivated to undergo rehabilitation in a virtual environment”, says professor of Physical Education and Health Carlos Monteiro, coordinator of the initiative.
complementary strategy
The research carried out by the USP group does not use the immersive metaverse, which includes virtual reality glasses. In a simpler way, it is possible to perform tasks with just a computer or cell phone and a good internet connection.
According to experts, this facilitates people’s access to this form of rehabilitation and prevents them from having to spend money on expensive virtual glasses or travel to laboratories with advanced equipment. With the use of the non-immersive metaverse, the therapist can also attend to more than one patient at a time and people from different states now have access to this treatment.
Despite these advantages, Monteiro points out that the metaverse is a complement to traditional recovery methods, not a replacement. “We realized that when tasks in the virtual environment are more difficult than in real life, this makes it easier to carry out activities in real life”, he says.
He points out as challenges for the widespread use of investors to believe in the use of the metaverse for health purposes, and the difficulty of some people to adapt to digital platforms. For him, however, the use of the metaverse in education and health can be postponed, but it is inevitable.
(With information from the Journal of USP)
Source: CNN Brasil
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