The Future of Medicine | Tech Trends in Healthcare

In 2020, while working at a clinic, she received a request to counsel a patient with acrophobia (fear of heights). The patient, who worked on a high floor of a skyscraper and was particularly afraid of panoramic windows with a bird’s-eye view of the city, contacted the clinic for help. Inna was assigned to counsel the patient, which was a routine consultation. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, around 12.5% of adults in the US experience specific phobias at some point in their lives, which means that consultations for phobias make up around 5-10% of consultations.

CBT counsellors typically use imaginal exposure therapy to help patients overcome specific phobias. This type of therapy involves the patient vividly imagining the feared object, situation, or activity. For example, a person with post-traumatic stress disorder might be asked to recall and describe their traumatic experience to reduce feelings of fear.

During the consultation, Inna used the imaginal exposure method, asking the patient to imagine standing on the roof of a skyscraper and looking down. However, not everyone has a vivid imagination, especially in an environment that traumatizes them. In addition, this therapy is time-consuming and can compromise the patient’s confidentiality. For instance, to overcome the fear of air travel, the therapist would need to accompany the patient on a flight, which is not always practical.

Unfortunately, the session ended earlier than expected. The patient was disappointed and left the office mid-session. The patient found it challenging to imagine the scenario and could not experience the real emotions as if they were looking at the view in person.

I was sitting at the dinner table with my father and our long-time friend, Peter Oykhman, waiting for Inna to come home. When she finally arrived, we could tell something was bothering her. Later, she confided in us about a negative experience she had gone through.

Inna suggested that it would be helpful if patients could teleport to a specific place where they could confront the object of their negative emotions in a safe way, similar to imaginal exposure but with a real-life component. We suggested the idea of using virtual reality instead, as it would provide the patient with a pre-made image rather than having to imagine it themselves.

I knew that we had the right idea – as at the right moment I was engaged in VR technologies being the Product Manager of the VR lab in the university for over the year. Thus was born an idea that soon became PsyTech VR. Peter, as the person who’s doing IT development for 30 years, immediately said that we’ll make the prototype within the next few months.

A few words about the history

Dr Aaron Beck coined Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) in the 1960s, and the first VR machine, Sensorama, was created by cinematographer Morton Heilig in the 1950s and patented in 1962. Sensorama was a large booth that could accommodate up to four people and combined various technologies to stimulate all of the senses. It featured full-colour 3D videos, audio, vibrations, smells, and atmospheric effects like wind.

Over the next 40 years, CBT gained widespread adoption and became the most popular approach approved by the WHO, while VR struggled to find its use case. However, in 1999, a group of psychiatrists and computer scientists from Emory University School of Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, and Atlanta VAMC presented their work on Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy for PTSD Vietnam Veterans: A Case Study. The research showed that VR works for trauma therapy, and the study presented the results of the first Vietnam combat veteran with PTSD to have been treated with VRE. The patient was exposed to two virtual environments, a virtual Huey helicopter flying over a virtual Vietnam and a clearing surrounded by jungle. The patient experienced a 34% decrease in clinician-rated PTSD and a 45% decrease in self-rated PTSD.

Treatment gains were maintained at the 6-month follow-up. This groundbreaking study was a turning point for VR, as scientists and practitioners realized that it had the potential to be used in treating disorders. The basic idea is simple: if a person is afraid of something, such as spiders, they can put on VR glasses, find the creature in a virtual room, carefully examine it from all sides, or watch it descend from the ceiling on a thread of web. The patient’s task is to cope with their fear and take control of it. If they do everything correctly, the phobia will eventually disappear or at least become weaker.

According to scientists, VR therapy increases the effectiveness of treating anxiety disorders by up to 30% compared to traditional methods. It allows patients to transfer the internal processes of their psyche into an external, virtual environment, where they can work with their negative experiences outside of their heads.

After the Virtual Vietnam study, thousands of scientists began investigating the potential of virtual reality therapy. If you search for “VR therapy” on Google Scholar in 2023, you will find more than 300,000 articles published on the subject. The effectiveness of VR has shown the scientific community that PTSD is not the only use case, and other negative emotions, such as specific phobias, ADHD, autism, and schizophrenia, can benefit from VR therapy’s positive effects.

Find use case and use the momentum

PsyTech VR was founded after Inna, a CBT counsellor, encountered an issue that led to the discovery of a new opportunity. We realised that virtual reality (VR) can be used to promote peace and help people worldwide reduce anxiety and stress.

Our company was established in 2020, coinciding with the launch of Meta’s groundbreaking VR headset, the Meta Quest 2. We recognized the potential of standalone VR models like the Oculus Quest 1, which showed that the future of VR was standalone devices despite its CPU, battery, and tracking issues.

Despite the popularity of headsets that our competitors use – Pico g2 4K or VR cardboards using 3-Degree-Of-Freedom technologies, we chose to bet on the Meta Quest 2, which we believed was the most cutting-edge device available for the price. As it turns out, we were right. Within two years, Meta sold 20 million copies of the Meta Quest, making it the most widely sold VR device in history. During last Christmas, the Meta Quest was the most popular gift in the US.

Our VR platform, which features 6-Degree-Of-Freedom technology, allows users to navigate the virtual world using a full spectrum of movement. Users can use controllers to walk around, stationary boundaries to explore immersive environments, or even hand-tracking technology to interact with virtual objects, such as grabbing virtual spiders in our arachnophobia therapy. Our immersive technology allows users to observe MRI scans in virtual claustrophobia exposures or walk in a Japanese garden with blooming sakura in our travel therapy. All of this is made possible by the cutting-edge technology of Meta Quest 2.

We’ve understood that The COVID-19 pandemic has emphasised the importance of accessible mental health care, with a rise in mental health disorders and 53% of US adults reporting negative impacts on their mental health due to pandemic-related stress. Our SaaS platform offers a personalised VR immersive multimodal perception experience tailored to each user’s needs and reduces barriers to non-pharmaceutical treatment for individuals who may otherwise face financial or geographical limitations.

Our XR platform is available to private practices of mental health practitioners, clinics, universities, and enterprises. It has the potential to revolutionise mental health and wellness care in the rapidly growing virtual reality therapy market.

When we compare PsyTech VR to a swiss army knife, we understand that our VR library is the largest available on the market and covers the following subjects:

➡️ The person can take a VR headset on the consultation with counselor, or during the self-guided trainnig from the comfort of home and experience the virtual triggers in a safe environment to overcome negative emotions – anxieties and stress.

➡️ In addition, PsyTech VR has developed an adaptive micro-training VR system that focuses on mental health and wellness. Our advisory team of psychologists found that during VR exposure therapy, users often face the challenge of the environment not aligning with their therapeutic needs and desires. To solve this, we made VR experiences adaptable to users’ needs with GenAI. PsyTech VR is the first company to integrate GenAI for therapy.

Recently, we have received the non-paid video review from James Husband – UK cbt/emdr counselor and the author of the Psychology on Demand YouTube channel. James explained how our AI can be used in the process of therapy.

But why the spotlight on VR in healthcare, you ask?

Step into the shoes of those seeking mental wellness, where PsyTechVR crafts tales of healing. VR, with its immersive charm, becomes a canvas for therapeutic interventions. Imagine confronting fears, unraveling anxieties, and battling phobias not in the dimly lit rooms of traditional therapy, but in the vivid landscapes of virtual reality. PsyTechVR’s ingenious use of VR, akin to a magical potion, addresses mental health with an unprecedented blend of personalization and adaptability.

This isn’t just about numbers climbing on a graph. It’s about breaking barriers, transcending borders, and making mental healthcare a tangible reality for everyone. As we emerge from the shadows of a pandemic-stricken world, the accessibility VR offers becomes a lifeline.

PsyTechVR’s SaaS platform, a beacon of hope, delivers tailored VR therapy experiences, democratizing mental health care.

But there’s more to this enchanting tale. Imagine a VR mask not just as a gateway to virtual realms but as a guardian, measuring heart rates, stress levels, and concentration. The integration of biosensors paints a new chapter, where data-driven insights guide both users and healthcare practitioners through the labyrinth of mental well-being.

As the ‘Global Virtual Reality (VR) in healthcare market’ continues its crescendo, we find ourselves at the dawn of a new era. VR, once a niche, is now the protagonist in the tale of healthcare transformation. With USD 7 billion on the horizon in 2023, the story of VR in healthcare is not just an expert opinion—it’s a saga of healing, accessibility, and the promise of a brighter, more immersive tomorrow.

The AR device details – what information did it provide and how much training did it take to use?

You are able to see in real time: the coronal, sagittal and axial views. In addition, the AR headset worn on the surgeon’s head allows them to see all scans and pre-surgery planning that were uploaded before the surgery. You just move your eyes around this visual field — left, right, up and down — and you have everything. It’s like a PlayStation. As long it was the first time that robotics and AR were used in a real surgery, obviously, much of my training and adaptation were done in a lab.

I’m a neurosurgeon specialist in complex spine surgery and minimally invasive spine surgery since 2019. Regarding robotic spine surgery, I’m already familiar since 2017 but in the last few years, I decided to use it more and more. Today, it has become already a standard practice in my service. Regarding AR, it is still something new to me, and I just started to implement it in the last few weeks after a lot of research with the Mazor team.

Are AR assisted surgeries a recent phenomenon or have they been around for a while?

They already have been around for a while but as every new technology, we need to be very. careful implementing new practices. Safety first.

I am positive that AR and even VR will be soon a routinely tool in the medical practice. It includes not only surgeries but also trainees education, case evaluation and team discussion.

AR played a significant role throughout the conference. We even collaborated with Aakash Mansukhani to set up a digital AR booth, accessible by scanning the back of a business card, where attendees could delve into the work we do with Children’s Cancer Research Fund. They could physically approach the digital billboards, meet the incredible children we support, and feel the call to get involved.

We also hosted nightly gaming sessions and workshops for patients who traveled to the summit. They played patient inspired AR games we had collaborated on with Eugene Soh, which are tailored to battling cancer and are limited mobility friendly. They could try on digital costumes, thanks to our collaborations with Jeetesh Singh and Krunal, and bring AR butterflies to life, courtesy of our teammate Krunal. Nights were filled with wonder and laughter, and the kids even had the chance to create their very own AR video game with the help of our teammate Florencia Raffa! The results were nothing short of incredible, igniting excitement about the boundless potential of AR. Attendees of the conference even had the opportunity to use an AR head tracking experience to promote their involvement at the summit thanks to our teammate Meet Kacha!