 "Photo: screenshot courtesy of Dr. Albert Rizzo")
The uncontrollable world of Iraq has now been replicated into a controlled virtual environment being used to treat Iraqi veterans. The military has recently endorsed the research of a virtual reality simulation called "Virtual Iraq" in the use of post-traumatic stress disorder in veterans of Operation Iraqi Freedom and currently active military. "The Office of Naval Research (ONR) is funding three projects to evaluate virtual reality therapy for treatment of acute post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)," according to a release from the Corporate Communications office. "The three-year, approximately $4-million program will examine how virtual reality can be used by therapists to treat PTSD in military personnel before the disorder disrupts their lives and careers." Dr. Albert Rizzo, research scientist at the Institute for Creative Technologies, said use of exposure therapy began at the end of last year. Rizzo said therapists can gradually guide participants through their fears in the safe environment. The therapist can speak and listen to patients through the headsets both wear. Rizzo has teamed up with Ken Gaap, CEO of Virtually Better, and Dr. Barbara Rothbaum, psychiatry professor at Emory University School of Medicine. "The vision for the project includes not only the design of a series of diverse scenario settings (i.e. city, outlying village and desert convoy scenes) but as well, the creation of options for providing the user with different first person user perspective options," according to the release. "These choice options when combined with real time clinician input via the 'Wizard of Oz' clinical interface is envisioned to allow for the creation of a user experience that is specifically customized to the varied needs of clients who participate in treatment. This is an essential component for giving the therapist the capacity to modulate client anxiety as is required for an exposure therapy approach." "The Intersense InertiaCube2 tracker is being used for 3 Degree Of Freedom (pitch, roll and yaw) head orientation tracking and the user navigates through the scenario using a USB gamepad device," according to a release from the new three-person team. According to the release the eMagin OLED z800 HMD capable of 800x600 (SVGA) resolution is being used as a headset. "The olfactory stimuli are delivered via the Scent Pallet®, developed by Envirodine Studios, Inc," according to the release. "The Scent Pallet® is a computer peripheral, USB device that uses up to eight scent cartridges, a series of fans and a small air compressor to deliver scents to participants. The scents can be computer controlled by placing triggers into the VR programs (e.g., participant walks by a fire and smells smoke), delivered via key press by the clinician, or simply turned off to decrease sensory impact within the virtual environment." MULTIMEDIA: See what the game is like. Video courtesy of Albert Rizzo
Rizzo said participants can also feel the environment. "Vibration is obtained through the use of a Logitech Force-Feedback Gamepad and from of sound transducers (Aura Bass Shakers, Aura Sound, Inc., located beneath the client's floor platform driven by an audio amplifier," according to the release. "The sound files embedded in the software are customized to provide vibration consistent with relevant visual and audio stimuli in the scenario." Rizzo said in each session new stimuli are incorporated in a controlled format. "With PTSD, the patient is resistant to the trauma that occurred in Iraq," Rizzo said. "[During exposure therapy] you want the patient to feel some level of anxiety." Session one: The patient sits in a humvee watching people in markets, other soldiers patrolling and dead bodies lying on the ground. Session two: The patient begins to hear the sounds of yelling, gun shots, jets flying overhead, explosions in the distance and the ambient sounds of a city. Session three: The patient begins to drive the humvee down the rugged terrain while feeling the vibrations of the seat from the explosions and fired weapons. Session four: The patient beings to smell the scents of body odor, burning tire rubber and Middle Eastern spices. Rizzo has recreated graphics from the popular Xbox game "Full Spectrum Warrior" because of its already well-made graphics. "Full Spectrum Warrior" is a combat-tactics simulation video game the U.S. Military helped create. The game was initially created for the general public. Rizzo is a professor at the University of Southern California, where the game's art was created, so he had access to all of the graphics. "We used patients from Iraq to help re-tool the game," Rizzo said. Rizzo said the environment is still being built on and evolved. "We try to maximize the number of sensations in this virtual environment," Rizzo said. "Exposure therapy is simply the best documented treatment for PTSD."
----- Contact Abby Knight at aknight@lsureveille.com
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