Real-time Remotely Supervised Virtual Reality based Intelligent Pulmonary Rehabilitation for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Patients: Quantitative Study (Preprint)

BACKGROUND The uptake and completion rates for traditional pulmonary rehabilitation programs for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease are low. A recent study using a newly developed Pulmonary rehabilitation in Virtual Reality (“PRinVR”) program has shown an increase in these rates, as well as significant improvements in both physical and psychological well-being. However, further research with a larger sample size must be conducted to confirm the positive effects of using VR in pulmonary rehabilitation. OBJECTIVE This paper aims to further assess the effectiveness of a novel Virtual Reality pulmonary rehabilitation intervention (“PRinVR”) for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, with a specific focus on compliance with the intervention, improvements to physical health, and improvements to mental health. METHODS A total of 140 patients from various GP surgeries in North Lincolnshire and completed the PRinVR program over the course of 24 months (March 2020-March 2022). Quantitative data were recorded in the form of self-report surveys before and after completing PRinVR. Further quantitative data on a 1-minute sit-to-stand test (1M-STS) was also recorded. The 3 self-report surveys include the Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7), Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), and the Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Assessment Test (CAT). RESULTS An 85% compliance rate was recorded. The CAT and 1M-STS measuring physical recovery demonstrated major improvements to physical health (52.71% and 76.19% respectively). The GAD-7 and PHQ-9 measuring mental health also showed that over half of patients saw improvements (50.46% and 57.00% respectively). CONCLUSIONS This paper has provided further evidence on the effectiveness of PRinVR in improving compliance, physical health, and psychological health.