title: BusWorld: designing a virtual environment for post-traumatic stress disorder in Israel: a protocol.
abstract: A number of carefully controlled studies have documented the effectiveness of traditional imaginal exposure for the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Virtual reality (VR) exposure therapy is based on a similar logic but rather than self-generating imagery, patients wear a VR helmet and go into a three-dimensional (3-D) computer generated virtual world to help them gain access to their memory of the traumatic event. Recent preliminary research has shown that some patients who fail to respond to traditional therapy benefit from virtual reality exposure therapy, presumably because VR helps the patient become emotionally engaged while recollecting/recounting/re-interpreting/emotionally processing what happened during the traumatic event. The present paper presents a brief overview of a new VR World we developed to provide virtual reality therapy for terrorist bus bombing victims in Israel, and a brief description of our research protocol and measures (for details, see www.vrpain.com).
authors.affiliation: Department of Occupational Therapy, University of Haifa, Mount Carmel, Haifa, Israel. naomij@research.haifa.ac.il
authors.forename: Naomi
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Josman
authors.forename: Eli
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Somer
authors.forename: Ayelet
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Reisberg
authors.forename: Patrice L Tamar
authors.initials: PL
authors.lastname: Weiss
authors.forename: Azucena
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Garcia-Palacios
authors.forename: Hunter
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hoffman
mesh_terms: D002985:Clinical Protocols; D003198:Computer Simulation; D003887:Desensitization, Psychologic / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D007557:Israel; D018986:Motor Vehicles; D010775:Photic Stimulation / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D023481:Terrorism / Q000523:psychology; D013813:Therapy, Computer-Assisted / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014584:User-Computer Interface