A clinical trial of a patient-customized virtual reality intervention for tinnitus

Virtual reality (VR) has recently been used as a clinical treatment because it can efficiently simulate situations that are difficult to control in real-world settings. In our study, we assessed the potential of VR in patients with chronic subjective tinnitus. An evaluation of its clinical benefits...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Scientific reports 2022-07, Vol.12 (1), p.12441-12441, Article 12441
Main Authors: Park, Dong Heun, Han, Sang Sun, Han, Munsoo, Park, Seongbin, Kim, Hae Nim, Kim, Jiyeon, Aan, Hojun, Kim, Jimoon, Kim, Sungkean, Kim, Kibum, Choi, June
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
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692/700
Clinical trials
Cognitive ability
Computer applications
EEG
Humanities and Social Sciences
Intervention
multidisciplinary
Patients
Quality of life
Questionnaires
Science
Science (multidisciplinary)
Theta rhythms
Tinnitus
Virtual reality
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Summary:Virtual reality (VR) has recently been used as a clinical treatment because it can efficiently simulate situations that are difficult to control in real-world settings. In our study, we assessed the potential of VR in patients with chronic subjective tinnitus. An evaluation of its clinical benefits was performed based on analyses of patient electroencephalograms (EEGs) and by questionnaire responses after 6–8 weeks of patient involvement in our VR-based alleviation program. Clinical trials were performed at a tertiary academic hospital. Nineteen patients (aged 33–64 years) who visited our hospital with chronic subjective tinnitus over 3 months were enrolled in the study. The intervention consisted of trashing the tinnitus avatar in VR. We expected that the patients would have the subjective feeling of controlling tinnitus through our intervention. The VR environment comprised four different sessions in four different settings: a bedroom, a living room, a restaurant, and a city street. We analyzed changes in the source activities of the prefrontal regions related to tinnitus in these patients using standardized low-resolution brain electromagnetic tomography. The Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI), the total score (from 50.11 to 44.21, P  = 0.046) and the grade (from 3.16 to 2.79, P  = 0.035) were significantly improved after the VR-based tinnitus treatment program ( P  
ISSN:2045-2322
2045-2322
DOI:10.1038/s41598-022-16764-5