Researchers pioneer virtual reality to help athletes after concussions
Realistic 3-D computer generated environments enable the athlete to feel fully immersed in cyber-imagery.
Penn State may be the first institution to use virtual reality to protect student athletes from the very real consequences of concussions. University researchers in kinesiology, information technology and sports medicine are using the technology to investigate cognitive changes beyond the limits of typical diagnostic tests.
Sam Slobounov, director of Sport Concussion Research Services, and Elena Slobounov, lead applications programmer in Information Technology Services Research Computing and Cyberinfrastructure, have been partnering with Penn State's Director of Sports Medicine, Dr. Wayne Sebastianelli, to design rehabilitative software for athletes at Penn State for more than a decade. One of the crowning achievements of their work is a National Institute of Health funded Virtual Reality (VR) lab in Rec Hall.
The lab is Penn State's latest, most sophisticated tool to investigate and treat traumatic brain injury in student-athletes. More than 300,000 sports-related concussions occur annually, and the likelihood of suffering a concussion while playing a contact sport can be as high as 19 percent per year.
Penn State's current approach to the growing concussion crisis is to administer baseline tests at the beginning of every season for high injury prone athletes and measure normal cognitive function. Many of these assessments involve virtual reality, and feature realistic 3-D computer generated environments that enable the athlete to feel fully immersed in cyber-imagery.
In the lab, the participant wears a special headset and stands on a platform in front of a 12-foot by 10-foot screen, then navigates with a joystick through a simulation of hallways and rooms, a 3-D elevator and more. Researchers assess brain function using electroencephalogram (EEG), balance, memory, attention and reaction time tests.
By comparing participant's performance in the simulation before and after trauma, medical professionals can determine the severity of the injury.
The project comes at a time when the discussion over concussion analysis and treatment has been gathering steam nationwide. Professional athletes and organizations such as the NFL, NCAA, and Big Ten Conference have recently moved toward more formal protocols to recognize and treat sports-related brain trauma.
This attention to the consequences of concussions is essential to maintaining the health of players both in the game and later in life.
Sports fans are likely familiar with Sebastianelli and his medical staff rushing onto the field to examine injured players during a Nittany Lions football game. In these first moments, trainers look for physical symptoms like blurred vision, nausea, memory loss or slurred speech when diagnosing brain injury.
However, a critical concern is also whether an athlete has had a previous concussion. A second impact coming within days of an initial blow can cause cerebral edema and herniation, leading to collapse and even death within minutes. Trainers also know that multiple concussions, over time, can result in long-term neurological deficits that can mimic advanced stage Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases.
While both fans and players may want the game to go on, it is important for everyone to take the risk of brain injury seriously. According to Slobounov, who also serves as a professor in Penn State's Kinesiology department, it's essential the athlete doesn't return to play before they are fully recovered, because decreased reaction time could make them susceptible to new injuries.
Fortunately, the increased awareness of governments and professional organizations is a step in the right direction. "We're working to make it more socially acceptable for athletes to report concerns about themselves or their fellow team members and have instituted baseline cognitive testing both before and after a concussion takes place," Sebastianelli added. "This type of support is essential to saving lives—and athletic careers."
Also essential are better data, and Penn State's VR lab is on the leading edge.
Slobounov said that VR assessment is an enormous breakthrough. "To my knowledge, Penn State is unique in using VR to solve the brain injury epidemic. Because of this work, national organizations such as the Department of Defense and the NFL are beginning to take interest."
The Slobonouvs and Sebastianelli ultimately wish to use their success in traumatic brain injury analysis to advocate mandatory testing and concussion assessment for high school athletes.
More information: To learn more, visit Stream magazine at stream.it.psu.edu/… eature/v1/i1
Provided by
Pennsylvania State University
-
AMSSM issues position statement on sport-related concussions
Jan 07, 2013 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Concussion testing makes everyone tired
Dec 06, 2011 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Study flags over-reliance on computer tests in return-to-plan decisions after concussion
Feb 02, 2012 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Female and younger athletes take longer to overcome concussions
May 08, 2012 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Many high school football players not concerned about concussions
Oct 22, 2012 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Motion perception revisited: High Phi effect challenges established motion perception assumptions
Apr 23, 2013 |
3 / 5 (2) |
2
-
Anything you can do I can do better: Neuromolecular foundations of the superiority illusion (Update)
Apr 02, 2013 |
4.5 / 5 (11) |
5
-
The visual system as economist: Neural resource allocation in visual adaptation
Mar 30, 2013 |
5 / 5 (2) |
9
-
Separate lives: Neuronal and organismal lifespans decoupled
Mar 27, 2013 |
4.9 / 5 (8) |
0
-
Sizing things up: The evolutionary neurobiology of scale invariance
Feb 28, 2013 |
4.8 / 5 (10) |
14
-
Classical and Quantum Mechanics via Lie algebras
Apr 15, 2011
- More from Physics Forums - Independent Research
More news stories
Driving and hands-free talking lead to spike in errors, study shows
Talking on a hands-free device while behind the wheel can lead to a sharp increase in errors that could imperil other drivers on the road, according to new research from the University of Alberta.
Health
21 hours ago |
not rated yet |
0
About one in four uninsured could be excluded from ACA
(HealthDay)—More than one in four of those eligible for new premium assistance tax credits under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) do not have a checking account and will not be able to receive premiums from ...
Health
23 hours ago |
not rated yet |
0
Audiologists recommend smart phone apps to monitor noise levels
After studying noise in one French Quarter neighborhood of New Orleans to determine whether or not noise levels exceeded municipal ordinances, Annette Hurley, PhD, Assistant Professor of Audiology at LSU Health Sciences Center ...
Health
May 24, 2013 |
not rated yet |
0
Young children who miss well-child visits are more likely to be hospitalized
Young children who missed more than half of recommended well-child visits had up to twice the risk of hospitalization compared to children who attended most of their visits, according to a study published today in the American Jo ...
Health
May 24, 2013 |
not rated yet |
0
Do doctors understand the individualisation of treatments?
The individualisation of drug treatments to support patients to self-manage their conditions is a concept that sits at the heart of policy, but a recent study in BMJ Open shows that there is no concrete defini ...
Health
May 24, 2013 |
3 / 5 (1) |
0
First drug to improve heart failure mortality in over a decade
Coenzyme Q10 decreases all cause mortality by half, according to the results of a multicentre randomised double blind trial presented today at Heart Failure 2013 congress. It is the first drug to improve heart failure mortality ...
Heart failure accelerates male 'menopause'
Heart failure accelerates the aging process and brings on early andropausal syndrome (AS), according to research presented today at the Heart Failure Congress 2013. AS, also referred to as male 'menopause', was four times ...
Death highest in heart failure patients admitted in January, on Friday, and overnight
Mortality and length of stay are highest in heart failure patients admitted in January, on Friday, and overnight, according to research presented today at the Heart Failure Congress 2013. The analysis of nearly 1 million ...
Feds fight morning-after pill age ruling in NY
(AP)—Department of Justice lawyers have again asked a federal appeals court in New York to delay lifting age restrictions and prescription requirements on an emergency contraceptive popularly known as the morning-after ...
Researchers identify first drug targets in childhood genetic tumor disorder
Two mutations central to the development of infantile myofibromatosis (IM)—a disorder characterized by multiple tumors involving the skin, bone, and soft tissue—may provide new therapeutic targets, according to researchers ...
Comorbidities common with alopecia areata
(HealthDay)—Comorbid conditions often accompany alopecia areata, according to a study published online May 22 in JAMA Dermatology.