VR Stretching Games and Exercises for Children with Cerebral Palsy
Virtual Reality games are known for their immensely profound immersive content. The games played in VR are known to increase motivation and boost confidence.
These applications of VR stretching games help cerebral palsy patients to improve motor functions and prevent the development of new problems.
VR-based exercises for cerebral palsy patients are the state of the art and highly efficient form of technologically enabled physical therapy being adopted by doctors worldwide.
We will see how VR stretching games for cerebral palsy rehabilitation broadcast their applications and uses in a cerebral palsy-affected individual.
Virtual reality stretching games for cerebral palsy
An example of a game in VR used to train cerebral palsy patients is Tennis in VR. The game is based on the real game of tennis but in a virtual world. The patient has to volley back the balls coming at him from the other court.
The patient can move around using the joysticks present on the VR controller and can volley back the ball using his arm action.
The level of the game can be changed, else it automatically updates the levels based on the patient’s performance. The modifiable quantities are the speed of the ball and the height of the ball.
To make it more fun and engaging, the rackets can be colored i.e. can be personalized, the ball can be personalized and so can the arena in which the patient is playing.
All this leads to increased participation from the patients towards the game. Which in turn increases the number of repetitions. The increase in repetitions is what is actually needed from the patients to make their brains adapt to healthier and proper body movements.
One more example of a VR stretching game for cerebral palsy is called Bow and Arrow game. In this, the child has to hit the required target using a bow and an arrow.
The target can be modified and made into circular rings with points on them, it can be made into certain fruits with points on them, and it can be made into balloons as well.
The bow and arrow can also be modified and colored differently and the child is given the option to choose those colors. The environment around can also be modified like wind can flow from one or the other direction at a certain speed.
Related post: Role of Virtual Reality Games in Cerebral Palsy Rehabilitation
The target too can change its position from left to right or from top to bottom. After agreeing to game settings, the child has to hit the target. This game helps in stretching his arms, also improves his hand-eye coordination.
Virtual reality exercises for cerebral palsy
Exercises in VR for cerebral palsy are for stretching, strengthening, positioning, and facilitating the correct movements. These exercises do not require the presence of a physical therapist.
These exercises can be performed in the comfort of their homes. The results such as body movements, arm extension, arm strength, etc. are constantly monitored in VR and they can also be checked by their respective therapists online. The patient can either be in a sitting position or can be standing.
One example of such exercise is fixing an LED bulb. The child is asked to reach for an LED bulb placed on the top shelf, the height of the shelf can be changed according to the child’s ability.
After reaching the bulb, he is asked to change the defective bulb. Changing the bulb requires the child to rotate his wrist in the anti-clockwise direction which increases his wrist motion.
Then he is asked to put a new bulb in place of the defective bulb by rotating his wrists in the clockwise direction.
The bulb position can be changed according to the levels in the exercise, i.e. can be placed anywhere on the screen. The bulb color can also be modified.
One more such exercise is called Move piece through a path. The child is presented with a computer-generated path in VR.
And he/she has to carefully move a piece through it without touching the path. The path can be modified and can be made as a straight line, a square, a triangle, a zig-zag pattern, etc.
The piece size can also be made bigger and smaller and of various shapes too like a triangle, a square, or a circle.
These modifications can be made personally or else they gradually change with the increase in the difficulty level. This exercise tests the patience of the child, the arm stability is also checked and so is his hand-eye coordination.
Social interaction
Cerebral palsy-affected children are usually scared of interacting with other people. This leads to a certain level of anxiety and depression. VR game for anxiety reduction has come up with exciting, stimulating journeys that are known to alleviate a person’s mood.
If the child is happy, there is no force in the world that can hold him down. These journeys provide an escape to their minds.
They can be on space expeditions (also can shoot the extra-terrestrial objects using VR controllers), they can be climbing a snowy mountain with ice axes, and they can be sitting in their homes and can feel the beauty of a beach inside a VR headset.
