The Last Word: UTD's Balakrishnan Prabhakaran on Virtual Reality Tech for Phantom Limb Pain - dallasinnovates.com

UTD machine scientists developed a strategy for managing phantom symptom successful collaboration with researchers astatine the Veterans Affairs North Texas Health Care System. [Photo: UTD]

Dr. Balakrishnan Prabhakaran
Professor of Computer Science
UT Dallas
.…on co-developing the Mr. MAPP VR strategy for amputees with phantom limb syndrome.

Dean Peterson, a U.S. Navy seasoned who mislaid his little near limb 16 years agone aft a hunting accident, slept easier for the archetypal clip successful years erstwhile helium took portion successful a caller aviator proceedings of Mr. MAPP. The “mixed reality” strategy combines VR and machine imaginativeness technologies and was co-developed by Dr. Prabhakaran.

The strategy uses a laptop, camera, and VR headset to make a virtual 3D exemplary of the user’s missing oregon paralyzed limb. Wearing the VR headset, Peterson played a bid of games wherever the virtual exemplary of his missing little limb did things similar stomp the level oregon burst a bubble.

“The full thought is to fool your encephalon into really seeing a limb and foot,” Peterson said successful a statement. “By the clip I was 3 weeks into the study, I realized the symptom wasn’t bothering maine arsenic overmuch astatine night. It was easier to autumn asleep. I was impressed with it.”

Peterson was conscionable 1 of a twelve veterans who took portion successful an at-home aviator proceedings of Mr. MAPP done the Dallas VA Medical Center. Mr. MAPP—short for Mixed world strategy for Managing Phantom Pain—was created aft years of probe led by Dr. Prabhakaran successful collaboration with researchers astatine the Veterans Affairs North Texas Health Care System.

Mr. MAPP uses RGB-D cameras similar Microsoft Kinect to crook retired a real-time 3D exemplary of the patient. An illusion of their virtual limb is created by mirroring their preserved limb successful the captured data, utilizing machine imaginativeness and graphics.

Prabhakaran and his chap researchers spot Mr. MAPP arsenic a imaginable alternate to opioid use—and judge the tech tin beryllium utilized for different conditions that origin symptom arsenic well. 

A high-tech VR update to a classical therapy

Mixed signals to the encephalon adjacent galore years aft an amputation are believed to beryllium the origin of phantom limb pain. The Mr. MAPP strategy is designed to assistance the encephalon resoluteness the signals. It’s an update to the classical “mirror container therapy” treatment, which uses  a container and a reflector to springiness the diligent the illusion of their missing limb. But the container and reflector therapy isn’t ideal, Prabhakaran says, and is usually lone offered successful wellness attraction settings.

Using VR and augmented-reality technology—which overlays real-world objects into virtual settings—Mr. MAPP improves connected the treatment, portion letting patients usage Mr. MAPP themselves close successful their ain homes. 

Peterson had tried reflector container therapy unsuccessfully successful the past, which is wherefore he’s excited by Mr. MAPP’s potential.

“It was a beauteous chill feeling. It felt similar I had 2 feet, and that was chill capable that I wanted to instrumentality with it,” Peterson said.

Senior writer Prabhakaran and the study’s co-authors described Mr. MAPP successful an nonfiction published online October 22 successful Pilot and Feasibility Studies.

UT Dallas co-authors of the survey see Kanchan Bahirat, Ph.D., who worked connected the task arsenic a doctoral pupil and present works at Simbe Robotics, and Yu Yen Chung, a machine subject doctoral student. Other contributors see corresponding writer Dr. Thiru Annaswamy, formerly with UT Southwestern Medical Center and the Dallas VA and precocious named seat of carnal medicine and rehabilitation astatine Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center; Dr. Gargi Raval, adjunct prof of carnal medicine and rehabilitation astatine UT Southwestern; and Tri Pham, a UT Southwestern aesculapian student.

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