Immersive Virtual Walking as Treatment for Neuropathic Pain in Spinal Cord Injury: Examining Treatment Efficacy and Cortical Mechanisms
Abstract
Chronic neuropathic pain (NP) can be a debilitating secondary condition for persons with spinal cord injury (SCI) and effective pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments remain elusive. The current project brings together international experts in basic science and clinical approaches to SCI NP in order to develop a rigorous multisite randomized clinical trial that will examine the efficacy and mechanisms of an advanced interactive virtual reality (VR) walking intervention (VRWalk). VR walking is a novel extension of illusory walking/visual feedback therapies and shows promise to be among the only effective non-pharmacological treatments for SCI NP. Both the VR and brain imaging applications proposed for the future study have been pioneered by members of the research team. The following primary aims were successfully completed as part of the current clinical trial development study: (Aim 1) Established secure, systematic communication and addressed essential organizational tasks; (Aim 2) Synchronized study sites with respect to imaging and VR capabilities during 1-week visits; (Aim 3) Refined and finalized the VRWalk intervention protocol, including neuroimaging outcomes; (Aim 4) Written a Manual of Operations to guide the multisite RCT and submitted a full Clinical Trial application for funding to the CDMRP.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 2020
- Accession Number
- AD1101178
Entities
People
- Zina Trost
Organizations
- University of Alabama at Birmingham