The impact of immersive virtual reality meditation for depression and anxiety among inpatients with major depressive and generalized anxiety disorders.
Jungjoo Lee, Junhyoung Kim, Marcia G Ory
Frontiers in psychology January 1, 2024 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1471269 via PubMed
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractA 10-week pilot clinical trial of Immersive Virtual Reality Meditation (IVRM) added to usual care for 26 adults with depression and anxiety found that improvements in emotional regulation, measured by Coherence Achievement Score from electrocardiogram, were associated with reductions in both depressive and anxiety symptoms. The single-arm study delivered the intervention three times weekly at a community hospital behavioral health unit. Results suggest that IVRM may enhance emotional regulatory function and help alleviate depression and anxiety, supporting the potential of technology-based complementary approaches.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Longitudinal single-arm clinical trial Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 26 |
| Population | Adults with Major Depressive Disorder and Generalized Anxiety Disorder at a community hospital behavioral health unit |
| Intervention | Immersive Virtual Reality Meditation |
| Duration | 10-week intervention, three times per week |
| Keywords | Heartmath Emotional regulation Mental health Pilot study Virtual reality meditation |
| Citations | 23 |
| Key finding | Higher Coherence Achievement Scores after IVRM participation were associated with reductions in depression and anxiety. |
Abstract
Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) is a non-pharmacological approach to alleviating depression and anxiety. While technology based MBCT is a standardized cost-effective approach, there have been concerns about its feasibility and effectiveness in clinical settings. The purpose of this study was to investigate the longitudinal relationship between improved emotional regulation resulting from participation in Immersive Virtual Reality Meditation (IVRM) and Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) as monitored by electrocardiogram. This study was a longitudinal single-arm clinical trial in which the intervention was conducted three times a week for 10 weeks at a behavioral health unit in a community hospital (n = 26). We measured Coherence Achievement Score (CAS), depression, and anxiety. The relationships between CAS, anxiety, depression, and covariates were analyzed using a Generalized Estimated Equation (GEE). The findings of our study provide evidence that the CAS scores indicative of emotional regulation function after IVRM participation were associated with a reduction in depression and anxiety. Among the many technology-based complementary health care interventions that are available to reduce depression and anxiety, IVRM program use increases emotional regulatory function and decrease depression and anxiety.