None listed
Conditions
Brief summary
Most people diagnosed with dementia will experience at least one type of behavioural and psychosocial symptoms of dementia (BPSD), however the prevalence varies across the literature, with up to 95% of people living with dementia experiencing BPSD during their hospital admission. BPSD may also result in inappropriate psychotropic prescribing, falls, distress, and death. Over the past decade, virtual reality (VR) technologies have gained interest as a novel therapeutic intervention for dementia. VR therapy provides a potential non-pharmacological approach to managing BPSD and minimising distress during an acute hospital admission. To date, no randomised control trial has been done on the use of VR therapy in the acute hospital setting in Australia.
Interventions
Virtual Reality (VR) therapy sessions using NeuronsVR headset.
The VR experiences are designed specifically for people with dementia, by VR experts and sound therapists in collaboration with aged and dementia care experts, including occupational therapists, gerontologists, and clinical neuropsychologists to ensure appropriate binaural beats, specific hertz vibrations and appropriate musical scores are applied. The NeuronsVR content is tailored to diverse preferences, offering experiences ranging
Virtual Reality (VR) therapy sessions using NeuronsVR headset. The VR experiences are designed specifically for people with dementia, by VR experts and sound therapists in collaboration with aged and dementia care experts, including occupational therapists, gerontologists, and clinical neuropsychologists to ensure appropriate binaural beats, specific hertz vibrations and appropriate musical scores are applied. The NeuronsVR content is tailored to diverse preferences, offering experiences ranging from calming environments to more upbeat experiences (e.g. armchair travel, mediation, waterfalls, fishing, visiting a zoo, skiing etc). NeuronsVR library is built and continually updated based on requests for particular experiences. Participants randomised into the intervention group will receive NeuronsVR therapy (a single VR session, approximately 10 minutes) once every 24-72hrs (every 1-3 days) up to 11 days in addition to usual care. The NeuronsVR therapy will be administered by an aged care nurse. Eleven days has been selected as this is the average length of stay (LOS) for patients with dementia at the research site. The maximum duration of the VR intervention will be 30 minutes allowing time for set up, VR delivery and post-intervention data collection. The VR intervention will last approximately 10 minutes and will be personalised to the participant using the South Eastern Sydney Local Health District (SESLHD) “Person Centred Profile/ TOP 5” form. This form is standard practice for all patients admitted to the aged care ward and does not form part of the study data collection. The form ask questions about the person’s life, likes, dislikes and things that cause distress. VR experiences appropriate to the participants interests are then selected from the library of available resources (for example walking through Italy or riding a motorbike). Should the participant become distressed or indicate a desire to cease the experience, the RA will remove the headset and provide reassurance as required.
Sponsors
Amy Montgomery (University of Wollongong & St. George Hospital)
Study design
Allocation
Randomised controlled trial
Intervention model
Parallel
Primary purpose
Treatment
Masking
Open (masking not used)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Age
50 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
Patients are eligible to participate in this study if: • they are admitted to an aged care ward at St George Hospital, NSW, Australia (7S, 7W and 3E) • have a diagnosis of dementia • are experiencing behavioural and psychosocial symptoms of dementia (BPSD) (BPSD tiers 3 to 7) • are 50 years old and over • are alert and score ‘A’ (alert) or ‘C’ (confusion/change in behaviour) on the ACVPU scale as per the NSW Health Standard Adult General Observation Chart • BPSD Tiers 3 to 7 • can provide consent themselves, or have a substitute decision maker (SDM) who is able to provide consent should the patient be unable to do so
Exclusion criteria
Exclusion criteria include patients who: • Score ‘V’ (verbal), ‘P’ (pain) or ‘U’ (unresponsive) on the ACVPU scale on the NSW Health Standard Adult General Observation Chart • Are unable to safely wear the VR therapy headset (e.g. facial wounds) • Are legally blind • Have an infectious diseases requiring isolation (such as COVID-19, gastroenteritis and active tuberculosis) • Have a history of seizures and/or epilepsy • Are unable to provide consent and have no available substitute decision maker (SDM) • Inability to sit up and remain seated for the duration of the VR therapy
Outcome results
None listed