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Extended Reality in Medicine and Healthcare: Methods, Technologies, Applications and Future Trends

A special issue of Sensors (ISSN 1424-8220). This special issue belongs to the section "Sensing and Imaging".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2024 | Viewed by 7489

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Alida Mazzoli

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Materials, Environmental Sciences and Urban Planning, Università Politecnica delle Marche, Via Brecce Bianche, 12, 60131 Ancona, Italy
Interests: additive manufacturing; biomaterials; biomedical engineering; medical devices; cranio-maxillofacial surgery; anatomical modelling
Dr. Marco Mandolini

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Industrial Engineering and Mathematical Sciences, Università Politecnica delle Marche, Ancona, Italy
Interests: biomedical engineering; medical devices; maxillofacial surgery; product design; design for XR
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Agnese Brunzini

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Industrial Engineering and Mathematical Sciences, Università Politecnica delle Marche, Ancona, Italy
Interests: biomedical engineering; mixed reality; human factors; user-centred design; health 4.0

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Extended Reality (XR), a term that encompasses virtual, augmented, and mixed reality, has the potential to revolutionize healthcare and medicine. From training healthcare professionals to enhancing patient care, XR can offer new ways to learn, diagnose, treat, and rehabilitate patients. As the technology continues to improve and become more accessible, the healthcare industry must explore its potential and address its challenges.

This Special Issue aims to provide a forum for researchers, practitioners, and experts to share their latest findings, insights, and experiences in using XR for healthcare and medicine. We invite original research articles, reviews, case studies, and perspectives that cover, but are not limited to, the following topics:

  • XR applications in medical education and training, such as simulators, games, and immersive experiences.
  • XR-based diagnostic and therapeutic tools, such as visualization, imaging, and surgery.
  • XR-enabled patient care, such as telemedicine, remote monitoring, and rehabilitation.
  • XR ethics, safety, and user experience in healthcare and medicine.
  • XR challenges and opportunities in healthcare policy, regulations, and economics.
  • XR technological innovations concerning head-mounted displays, tracking systems, and projectors.

This Special Issue addresses interactive technologies and systems, such as head-mounted displays, that can be employed for extended reality applications in medicine and health. Such topics comply with the scope of Sensors, including “Sensor technology and application”, “Human–computer Interaction”, “Vision/camera based sensors”, and “Sensing and imaging”. 

Dr. Alida Mazzoli
Dr. Marco Mandolini
Dr. Agnese Brunzini
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sensors is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • virtual reality
  • augmented Reality
  • mixed reality
  • metaverse
  • surgery
  • rehabilitation
  • surgical and medical simulation
  • health and medical education
  • health and medical training
  • intelligent healthcare service
  • telemedicine and telehealth
  • health 4.0
  • medical imaging
  • digital human modeling
  • interactive technologies and systems
  • multimodal interaction

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 8031 KiB  
Article
Study of the Possibility of Using Virtual Reality Application in Rehabilitation among Elderly Post-Stroke Patients
by Katarzyna Matys-Popielska, Krzysztof Popielski and Anna Sibilska-Mroziewicz
Sensors 2024, 24(9), 2745; https://doi.org/10.3390/s24092745 - 25 Apr 2024
Viewed by 1241
Abstract
Thanks to medical advances, life expectancy is increasing. With it comes an increased incidence of diseases, of which age is a risk factor. Stroke is among these diseases, and is one of the causes of long-term disability. The opportunity to treat these patients [...] Read more.
Thanks to medical advances, life expectancy is increasing. With it comes an increased incidence of diseases, of which age is a risk factor. Stroke is among these diseases, and is one of the causes of long-term disability. The opportunity to treat these patients is via rehabilitation. A promising new technology that can enhance rehabilitation is virtual reality (VR). However, this technology is not widely used by elderly patients, and, moreover, the elderly often do not use modern technology at all. It therefore becomes a legitimate question whether elderly people will be able to use virtual reality in rehabilitation. This article presents a rehabilitation application dedicated to patients with upper limb paresis and unilateral spatial neglect (USN). The application was tested on a group of 60 individuals including 30 post-stroke patients with an average age of 72.83 years. The results of the conducted study include a self-assessment by the patients, the physiotherapist’s evaluation, as well as the patients’ performance of the exercise in VR. The study showed that elderly post-stroke patients are able to use virtual reality applications, but the ability to correctly and fully perform an exercise in VR depends on several factors. One of them is the ability to make logical contact (p = 0.0001 < 0.05). However, the study presented here shows that the ability to use VR applications does not depend on age but on mental and physical condition, which gives hope that virtual reality applications can be used in post-stroke rehabilitation among patients of all ages. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Extended Reality in Medicine and Healthcare: Methods, Technologies, Applications and Future Trends)
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12 pages, 4572 KiB  
Article
Enhancing Well-Being: A Comparative Study of Virtual Reality Chromotherapy Rooms with Static, Dynamic, and Empty Environments
by Mine Dastan, Marina Ricci, Fabio Vangi and Michele Fiorentino
Sensors 2024, 24(6), 1732; https://doi.org/10.3390/s24061732 - 7 Mar 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1293
Abstract
Chromotherapy rooms (CRs) are physical spaces with colored lights able to enhance an individual’s mood, well-being, and, in the long term, their health. Virtual reality technology can be used to implement CR (VRCRs) and provide higher flexibility at lower costs. However, existing VRCRs [...] Read more.
Chromotherapy rooms (CRs) are physical spaces with colored lights able to enhance an individual’s mood, well-being, and, in the long term, their health. Virtual reality technology can be used to implement CR (VRCRs) and provide higher flexibility at lower costs. However, existing VRCRs are limited to a few use cases, and they do not fully explore the potential and pitfalls of the technology. This work contributes by comparing three VRCR designs: empty, static, and dynamic. Empty is just a void but a blue-colored environment. Static adds static abstract graphics (flowers and sea texture), and dynamic adds dynamic elements (animated star particle systems, fractals, and ocean flow). All conditions include relaxing low-beta and ocean sounds. We conducted a between-subject experiment (n = 30) with the three conditions. Subjects compiled a self-perceived questionnaire and a mathematical stress test before and after the VRCR experience. The results demonstrated that the dynamic condition provided a higher sense of presence, while the self-perceived stress level was insignificant. Dynamic VR conditions are perceived as having a shorter duration, and participants declared that they felt more involved and engaged than in the other conditions. Overall, the study demonstrated that VRCRs have a non-trivial behavior and need further study of their design, especially considering their role in a future where VR will be an everyday working interface. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Extended Reality in Medicine and Healthcare: Methods, Technologies, Applications and Future Trends)
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21 pages, 3339 KiB  
Article
Cognitive Effort during Visuospatial Problem Solving in Physical Real World, on Computer Screen, and in Virtual Reality
by Raimundo da Silva Soares, Jr., Kevin L. Ramirez-Chavez, Altona Tufanoglu, Candida Barreto, João Ricardo Sato and Hasan Ayaz
Sensors 2024, 24(3), 977; https://doi.org/10.3390/s24030977 - 2 Feb 2024
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2248
Abstract
Spatial cognition plays a crucial role in academic achievement, particularly in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) domains. Immersive virtual environments (VRs) have the growing potential to reduce cognitive load and improve spatial reasoning. However, traditional methods struggle to assess the mental effort [...] Read more.
Spatial cognition plays a crucial role in academic achievement, particularly in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) domains. Immersive virtual environments (VRs) have the growing potential to reduce cognitive load and improve spatial reasoning. However, traditional methods struggle to assess the mental effort required for visuospatial processes due to the difficulty in verbalizing actions and other limitations in self-reported evaluations. In this neuroergonomics study, we aimed to capture the neural activity associated with cognitive workload during visuospatial tasks and evaluate the impact of the visualization medium on visuospatial task performance. We utilized functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) wearable neuroimaging to assess cognitive effort during spatial-reasoning-based problem-solving and compared a VR, a computer screen, and a physical real-world task presentation. Our results reveal a higher neural efficiency in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) during 3D geometry puzzles in VR settings compared to the settings in the physical world and on the computer screen. VR appears to reduce the visuospatial task load by facilitating spatial visualization and providing visual cues. This makes it a valuable tool for spatial cognition training, especially for beginners. Additionally, our multimodal approach allows for progressively increasing task complexity, maintaining a challenge throughout training. This study underscores the potential of VR in developing spatial skills and highlights the value of comparing brain data and human interaction across different training settings. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Extended Reality in Medicine and Healthcare: Methods, Technologies, Applications and Future Trends)
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31 pages, 9292 KiB  
Article
The Feasibility and Accuracy of Holographic Navigation with Laser Crosshair Simulator Registration on a Mixed-Reality Display
by Ziyu Qi, Haitao Jin, Qun Wang, Zhichao Gan, Ruochu Xiong, Shiyu Zhang, Minghang Liu, Jingyue Wang, Xinyu Ding, Xiaolei Chen, Jiashu Zhang, Christopher Nimsky and Miriam H. A. Bopp
Sensors 2024, 24(3), 896; https://doi.org/10.3390/s24030896 - 30 Jan 2024
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1795
Abstract
Addressing conventional neurosurgical navigation systems’ high costs and complexity, this study explores the feasibility and accuracy of a simplified, cost-effective mixed reality navigation (MRN) system based on a laser crosshair simulator (LCS). A new automatic registration method was developed, featuring coplanar laser emitters [...] Read more.
Addressing conventional neurosurgical navigation systems’ high costs and complexity, this study explores the feasibility and accuracy of a simplified, cost-effective mixed reality navigation (MRN) system based on a laser crosshair simulator (LCS). A new automatic registration method was developed, featuring coplanar laser emitters and a recognizable target pattern. The workflow was integrated into Microsoft’s HoloLens-2 for practical application. The study assessed the system’s precision by utilizing life-sized 3D-printed head phantoms based on computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data from 19 patients (female/male: 7/12, average age: 54.4 ± 18.5 years) with intracranial lesions. Six to seven CT/MRI-visible scalp markers were used as reference points per case. The LCS-MRN’s accuracy was evaluated through landmark-based and lesion-based analyses, using metrics such as target registration error (TRE) and Dice similarity coefficient (DSC). The system demonstrated immersive capabilities for observing intracranial structures across all cases. Analysis of 124 landmarks showed a TRE of 3.0 ± 0.5 mm, consistent across various surgical positions. The DSC of 0.83 ± 0.12 correlated significantly with lesion volume (Spearman rho = 0.813, p < 0.001). Therefore, the LCS-MRN system is a viable tool for neurosurgical planning, highlighting its low user dependency, cost-efficiency, and accuracy, with prospects for future clinical application enhancements. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Extended Reality in Medicine and Healthcare: Methods, Technologies, Applications and Future Trends)
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