A preliminary study conducted by South Korean researchers suggests that virtual reality therapy could effectively treat alcohol addiction, according to Fox News.
The study’s senior researcher Dr. Doug Hyun Han of Chung-Ang University in Seoul, South Korea, suggests that the approach might be “promising” because it places patients in situations involving alcohol which are similar to real life and requires the participants to actively participate.
The study recruited 10 research participants who were patients with an alcohol dependency. Participants went through a week-long detox program, upon completion of detox, participants then participated in virtual reality therapy sessions twice a week over a period of five weeks. During the virtual reality sessions participants underwent three virtual realities. The first was a relaxing environment, the second was designed to trigger alcohol cravings by placing participants in a situation where others around them were drinking, and the third was designed to show the unpleasantries of drinking; participants were placed in a room where people were vomiting as a result of drinking alcohol.
According to the study, the results from the PET and CT scans administered to the participants upon completion of the virtual reality sessions suggested that participants experienced reduced cravings for alcohol. Researchers also found that areas of the brain, which are commonly sensitive to alcohol, showed changes after being repeatedly exposed to the three virtual realities.
Despite the study being small, Han believes the virtual therapy sessions could work and plans to conduct larger studies. However, Dr. Bernard Le Foll, head of the Alcohol Research and Treatment Clinic, Addiction Medicine Services, Ambulatory Care and Structured Treatments at the Center for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto, Canada believes that although the study indicates virtual reality creates changes in the metabolism, it has yet to be studied as a treatment approach for alcohol rehab.
“Much more research work needs to be done to be able to determine if ‘virtual reality’ treatment will have a place in the treatment of alcohol use disorder,”
Le Foll told Reuters in an email.
Le Foll suggests behavioral therapy combined with pharmaceuticals should be the recommended treatment for alcohol use disorder because it can make a big difference.
To keep up with trending addiction and recovery news,
Follow us: Facebook | Twitter | Google+
The post Researchers Say Virtual Reality Therapy Could Help Effectively Treat Alcoholism appeared first on Harbor Village Florida.
from Misc http://ift.tt/1eMkjwX via Heroin Rehab Dallas
No comments:
Post a Comment