Electronic skin has shown great application potential in many fields such as healthcare monitoring and human-machine interaction due to their excellent sensing performance, mechanical properties and biocompatibility. This paper starts from the materials selection and structures design of electronic skin, and summarizes their different applications in the field of healthcare equipment, especially current development status of wearable sensors with different functions, as well as the application of electronic skin in virtual reality. The challenges of electronic skin in the field of wearable devices and healthcare, as well as our corresponding strategies, are discussed to provide a reference for further advancing the research of electronic skin.
Emotion recognition refers to the process of determining and identifying an individual's current emotional state by analyzing various signals such as voice, facial expressions, and physiological indicators etc. Using electroencephalogram (EEG) signals and virtual reality (VR) technology for emotion recognition research helps to better understand human emotional changes, enabling applications in areas such as psychological therapy, education, and training to enhance people’s quality of life. However, there is a lack of comprehensive review literature summarizing the combined researches of EEG signals and VR environments for emotion recognition. Therefore, this paper summarizes and synthesizes relevant research from the past five years. Firstly, it introduces the relevant theories of VR and EEG signal emotion recognition. Secondly, it focuses on the analysis of emotion induction, feature extraction, and classification methods in emotion recognition using EEG signals within VR environments. The article concludes by summarizing the research’s application directions and providing an outlook on future development trends, aiming to serve as a reference for researchers in related fields.
Objective To explore the application effect of virtual reality (VR) technology in low vision teaching for optometry students. Methods Undergraduate students majoring in optometry at West China School of Medicine of Sichuan University were selected as the research subjects. The students enrolled in 2020 adopted the traditional lecture-based learning (LBL) teaching mode (LBL teaching group), while the students enrolled in 2021 adopted the VR teaching mode (VR teaching group). Both groups of students studied the content of the same chapter on low vision, completed in-class tests after learning, and completed a questionnaire survey. Results There were 28 students in the VR teaching group and 30 students in the LBL teaching group. There was no statistically significant difference in age or gender composition between the two groups of students (P>0.05). The in-class test scores of students in the VR teaching group were higher than those in the LBL teaching group (86.43±6.10 vs. 78.10±7.69, P<0.05). Except for “subjective discomfort with this teaching mode”, the differences in other evaluation results between the two groups were statistically significant (P<0.05). VR teaching group students generally believed that applying VR technology to low vision teaching helped understand the visual experience and daily life status of low vision patients, improved learning efficiency and hands-on ability, reduced learning burden, and hoped to use this teaching mode routinely in other subject teaching. All students in the VR teaching group believed that this teaching mode was interesting, highly innovative, and enhanced teacher-student interaction.Conclusions Applying VR technology to low vision teaching can enable students to personally experience the impact of various diseases on patients’ visual function and daily life. This teaching method not only optimizes and improves teaching effectiveness, but also has a high acceptance rate among students, which is worth further promoting in future optometry teaching.
Objective To explore the feasibility of virtual reality (VR) technology combined with reduction plasty of the femoral head in the treatment of coxa plana and evaluate its effectiveness. Methods Three patients with coxa plana were selected as the research objects between October 2018 and October 2020, all of them were male, aged 15-24 years. Preoperative surgical planning was performed using VR technology; 256 rows of CT data of hip joint were imported into software to generate three-dimensional (3D) imaging, simulate the surgical process, and determine the matching relationship between the femoral head and acetabulum. According to the preoperative planning, reduction plasty of the femoral head under surgical dislocation, relative lengthening of the femoral neck, and periacetabular osteotomy were performed. The reduction of osteotomy size of femoral head and rotation angle of acetabulum were confirmed by C-arm fluoroscopy. The healing of the osteotomy were assessed by radiological examination after operation. The Harris score of hip function and visual analogue scale (VAS) score were recorded before and after operation. The femoral head roundness index, center-edge (CE) angle, and femoral head coverage were measured by X-ray films. ResultsThree operations were completed successfully, and the operation time was 460, 450, and 435 minutes, and the intraoperative blood loss was 733, 716, and 829 mL, respectively. All patients were infused with 3 U suspension oligoleucocyte and 300 mL frozen virus inactivated plasma after operation. No postoperative complication occurred, such as infection and deep vein thrombosis. Three patients were followed up 25, 30, and 15 months, respectively. CT showed good healing of the osteotomy at 3 months after operation. The VAS score and Harris score at 12 months after operation and at last follow-up, as well as the femoral head rounding index, hip CE angle, and femoral head coverage at 12 months after operation significantly improved when compared with those before operation; the hip function was evaluated by the Harris score at 12 months after operation, and all three patients were good. ConclusionVR technology combined with reduction plasty of the femoral head can achieve satisfactory short-term effectiveness in the treatment of coxa plana.
Objective To explore the application effect of virtual reality simulation technology (VRST) combined with problem-based learning (PBL) mode in knee arthroscopy teaching in sports medicine department. Methods A total of 76 trainees in sports medicine at Sichuan Provincial Orthopedic Hospital from June 2021 to June 2022 were retrospectively selected. According to the different teaching modes, they were divided into the research group and the control group with 38 trainees in each group. The traditional teaching mode was implemented in the control group, while VRST and PBL mode were implemented in the research group. The objective assessment results and teaching effect feedback of the two groups were compared. Results There was no statistical difference between the two groups in the average theoretical score of the trainees (91.35±1.05 vs. 90.94±1.12, P>0.05). The scores of the three manipulating parts of the research group (9.03±0.24, 9.12±0.31, and 9.24±0.27, respectively) were higher than those of the control group (8.76±0.36, 8.44±0.57, and 8.35±0.51, respectively), moreover, trainees in the research group had higher scores for study enthusiasm, teaching satisfaction, three-dimensional space sense, and virtual reality conversion degree (9.12±0.16, 9.67±0.11, 9.34±0.22, and 9.56±0.18, respectively) than those of the control group (8.89±0.27, 9.16±0.34, 8.67±0.37, and 8.42±0.23, respectively), and the differences were all statistically significant (P<0.05). Conclusion VRST combined with PBL mode could improve trainees’ ability to operate arthroscopy significantly, and stimulate trainees’ subjective learning ability to improve teaching effect.
Objective To investigate the effect of virtual reality (VR) sham feeding on gastrointestinal function in elderly patients with hip fracture. Methods Elderly patients with hip fracture admitted to Trauma Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University between June and December 2024 who met the case selection criteria were selected. Patients who were willing to complete the postoperative VR operation were assigned to the experimental group (VR group), and the other patients were assigned to the control group by 1∶1 manual interval matching according to sex, age (±5 years), and body mass index (±2 kg/m2). The control group received fasting and nutrition management strategy during perioperative period of accelerated rehabilitation. In the VR group, VR sham feeding intervention was performed on the basis of the control group. The time of first postoperative exhaust and defecation, postoperative gastrointestinal symptoms, postoperative nutrition (hemoglobin, serum albumin) and inflammatory indicators (white blood cell count, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, C-reactive protein, interleukin-6), postoperative appetite and postoperative complications (bleeding, fever, delirium, aspiration, vertigo) were compared between the two groups. Results A total of 70 patients were enrolled, with 35 in each group. There were statistically significant differences (P<0.05) between the VR group and the control group in the time of postoperative first exhaust [(9.17±4.81) vs. (13.66±5.97) h], time of postoperative first defecation [(49.00±28.61) vs. (66.83±29.93) h], degree of abdominal distension 3 d after surgery (grade 0/1/2: 26/7/2 vs. 16/12/7 cases), appetite score 1 d after surgery (62.86±12.85 vs. 54.71±11.50), appetite score 3 d after surgery (76.29±9.95 vs. 62.43±8.86), albumin level 3 d after surgery [(33.18±3.41) vs. (31.40±3.07) g/L], and hospitalization days [(7.97±1.38) vs. (9.06±2.43) d], while there was no statistically significant difference in other indicators (P>0.05). Conclusions The incidence of postoperative gastrointestinal dysfunction is high in elderly patients with hip fracture. VR sham feeding can promote the early recovery of gastrointestinal function, alleviate postoperative abdominal distension, significantly improve postoperative appetite, and increase albumin level after surgery.
Gynecology and obstetrics teaching has strong practicality. Because of the lack of practice on patients who has strong self-protection consciousness and the likely injury due to invasive operation, students and young doctors can’t have many opportunities to make actual clinical operation which limits their abilities of clinical skills. Based on this, the virtual reality medical education in the teaching of obstetrics and gynecology develops fast these days because of its necessity, ethicality, and economical effect, which might be popularized. It plays a very important role in cultivating young doctors’ manipulative ability, training "three basics and three strictness", mastering abstract knowledge, and quantitative assessing effect of clinical teaching.
ObjectiveTo systematically review the efficacy of virtual reality technology on cognitive dysfunction in patients with cerebral vascular accident (CVA).MethodsEMbase, Web of Science, PubMed, The Cochrane Library, WanFang Data, VIP and CNKI databases were electronically searched to collect the randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on virtual reality technology on cognitive dysfunction in patients with CVA from inception to December 31st, 2020. Two reviewers independently screened literature, extracted data and assessed risk of bias of included studies. Meta-analysis was then performed using RevMan 5.3 software.ResultsA total of 25 RCTs involving 1 113 patients were included. The results of the meta-analysis showed that the scores of MBI (MD=9.24, 95%CI 1.91 to 16.56, P=0.01), MMSE (MD=3.02, 95%CI 1.11 to 4.93, P=0.002) and RBMT-2 (MD=2.74, 95%CI 1.97 to 3.51, P<0.000 01) in VR group were superior to the control group. However, there were no significant differences between the two groups in scores of BI, MOCA, and VCPT.ConclusionsCurrent evidence shows that virtual reality technology may have positively influence on cognitive function and participation in the daily life activities of patients with CVA. Due to the limited quality and quantity of the included studies, more high-quality studies are needed to verify the above conclusions.
Interventional radiology is an emerging discipline based on image-guided minimally invasive diagnosis and treatment. The number of interventional procedures performed is increasing year by year, resulting in a dramatic increase in the demand for interventional radiologists. Procedure training systems based on virtual reality (VR) technology simulate real interventional procedure through real-time interaction between hand manipulators and virtual environments, allowing physicians to experience real interventional procedures during training and reducing training time and costs. A growing number of medical schools are now adopting VR simulated training systems for interventional procedure training. This article reviews the relevant research progress of VR simulation interventional procedure training system in recent years and discusses the development prospects of VR technology in interventional procedure training.
ObjectiveTo design an interventional cardiology simulation system based on unity 3d virtual reality technology to simulate the multi-sensory feedback in the operation of heart disease. MethodsWe used 3Dmax and Unity3D engine to build a three-dimensional cardiovascular model, and use Falcon Novint and Rift Oculus software and hardware system to build a virtual reality environment to simulate pilot wire intervention surgery. ResultsThe user can use the Falcon Novint force feedback controller to carry out a variety of virtual instrument exercises of percutaneous coronary angioplasty, and also it can restore operation scene through Rift Oculus virtual reality device. ConclusionA simulation system for interventional surgery is designed, which provides the help for the extensive medical training.