Can Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) be treated with VR?

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease. This disease affects the person’s muscle controlling skills. A person may feel problems with muscular activity such as moving, speaking, eating, and breathing.

The exact reason is still unknown. Many pieces of research are under process but some doctors believe that it is inherited.

In 2019, there were approx. 57800 cases were reported of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). This number is expected to increase to 65,900 cases in 2029 at an annual growth rate (AGR) of 1.41%.
People between the ages of 55 to 75 are more likely to affect by ALS.
Males have more chances to get affected compared to females.

Symptoms of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)

Symptoms may differ from one person to another. It is mainly depending on the fact which neurons are get affected by the disease. There are common symptoms are:

Problem performing normal daily activity
Balance lost and falling
Weakness in feet, ankle, or feet
Weakness in hand and clumsiness
Trouble in swallow and speech
Irrational Expressions like crying, laughing, or keep yawning
Behavioural change and muscles cramp

It mainly starts with no pain as progressed it damage nerve cell, resulting in weak muscles and affects breathing, swallowing, speaking, and chewing.

How Virtual Reality works in healthcare

In the year 2020, Virtual reality in the healthcare market was evaluated at $2.076billion. For the year 2028, speculation is to reach $42.84 billion, at a CAGR of 39.98% for the period of 2021-2028.

Healthcare is the sector that is directly dealing with human life. The effectiveness of the treatment is also depending upon the advanced technology and procedures. When we are talking about Virtual Reality (VR), it has been accepted easily in the medical field, due to its vast scope.After much research and studies, results are very much in favor of VR. VR plays an important role in improving the performance of treatments as well as training. Many diseases are effectively treated with the help of VR, such as PTSD, Phobia, Parkinson’s disease, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, and Multiple Sclerosis.

VR in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) and its benefits

ALS gradually affects the person’s ability to do daily work at a normal pace. This disease cannot be cured, but with the treatment, the patient's living quality can be improved. Certain therapies can be performed with the help of VR.

Physical Therapy

Physical therapy helps the patient to stay independent. Some low-impact exercises are important to maintain cardiovascular fitness and muscles strength. Regular exercising also helps a person to feel fit and healthy.

This not only improves muscular strength but also improves mental health. VR rehabilitation therapy is the best way to do such exercise. VR success rate and efficiency are much better than conventional physiotherapy.

Speech therapy

Speech therapy can help the patient to learn alternative techniques to convey the message more effectively. Speech therapy helps to explore another communication method like communication through writing or sign language. VR speech therapy treatment can help patients to learn easily at their convenience.

Psychological Support

It is very common to feel depressed when one is suffered from such a critical disease. These patients need care, love, and psychological support. VR-designed suites for anxiety reduction and is very much effective in treating different types of mental disorders such as depression and phobia. This helps the patient to feel cheerful and connected.

VR has many benefits:

It is customized as per the situation and case of the patient.
Training with VR is safer than the actual scenario which reduces chances of accident and injury.
Practice is easy to do and improves the condition.
It increases the effectiveness of the result.

Conclusion

People with ALS not only need medical support but also love, care, and support. We at Cognihab, work hard to support them with our VR suites which are medically tested with the best healthcare professionals. You can show your support by spending time with them.