Title : Does Virtual Reality Physiotherapy Interventions Change Cardiopulmonary Function and Breathing-Control in Cystic Fibrosis ? A Systematic Review .
Mohammad Darabseh
Introduction : The main factors that limit participation in physiotherapy exercise interventions and airway clearance techniques ( ACT ) in both children and adolescents with cystic fibrosis are motivation and adherence . Virtual reality games are considered one of the newly developed techniques that are used in the exercise sessions for this population . But limited information is known about its effectiveness . Thus , this systematic review aims to evaluate , summarise and revise published literature about the effects of virtual reality exercise on cardiopulmonary function and the use of virtual reality games as a tool for ACT in cystic fibrosis population .
Method : A systematic review with quality assessment and narrative synthesis of relevant published literature was conducted . A systematic search was conducted using PEDro , MEDLINE , AMED , CINHAL Plus , and relevant associated keywords , from January 1970 to December 2020 . Inclusion criteria for the studies were : virtual reality aerobic exercise or virtual reality breath-control exercise as part of the intervention . Studies that did not include either exercise testing , spirometry , motivation / adherence assessment , or breathing control exercises were excluded .
Results : In total , 63 citations were identified from the search , of which ten were included in this review . Overall , virtual reality exercise was found to improve cardiac function and increase adherence and motivation towards the exercise sessions in people with cystic fibrosis .
Conclusion : People with cystic fibrosis might benefit from virtual reality exercise as part of their intervention . However , further studies with larger sample size and wider range of disease severity need to be conducted in future .
Impact : This systematic review summarises the effects of virtual reality exercises on cardiopulmonary function and increased adherence for aerobic exercise and breath-control exercise in cystic fibrosis ( CF ). As reported in a previous study that interviewed physiotherapists regarding including virtual reality in their programmes , virtual reality helped to improve paediatrics motivation towards aerobic exercise , but it is still a challenge for therapists to choose the correct game for each specific case ( Levac et al ., 2012 ). Moreover , taken into consideration the current circumstances regarding the Corona-Virus pandemic ( COVID-19 ), and for any potential unexpected circumstances , physiotherapists started to adapt their programmes remotely to continue delivering their programmes and to avoid deteriorations in different populations ( Smits , Staal , & van Goor , 2020 ). Subsequently , this review might give an insight about the importance of further investigating this mode of physiotherapy service delivery in CF considering the limited number of studies .
References :
Levac , D ., Miller , P ., & Missiuna , C . ( 2012 ). Usual and virtual reality video game-based physiotherapy for children and youth with acquired brain injuries . Physical & occupational therapy in pediatrics , 32 ( 2 ), 180-195 .
Smits , M ., Staal , J . B ., & van Goor , H . ( 2020 ). Could Virtual Reality play a role in the rehabilitation after COVID-19 infection ? BMJ open sport & exercise medicine , 6 ( 1 ), e000943 .