title: Virtual reality exposure in the treatment of fear of flying.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Recently, a growing body of research has appeared on different aspects of virtual reality exposure (VRE) therapy applied to the treatment of anxiety disorders. The purpose of this article was to review with a systematic methodology the evidences that support the potential effectiveness of this therapy in the treatment of fear of flying (FOF), a problem that significantly affects patients' social functioning and personal welfare.
  
  
  METHODS
  Potential studies were identified via computerized search using the PubMed/Medline and Web of Science databases, and additional review of their references. Articles ranged from 1969 to 2007 and the keywords used in the search were: "virtual reality" and "fear of flying"; "virtual reality" and "flying phobia"; or "virtual reality" and "flight phobia."
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were 40 studies using VRE in the treatment of FOF identified, mostly on the effectiveness of VRE therapy in group and case studies. Several components of the treatment protocols differed among the studies, which made the results comparison a challenging task. Nevertheless, controlled studies demonstrate that VRE treatment is effective with or without cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) and/or psychoeducation and that it is considered to be an effective component of the treatment of FOF.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  All studies that used cognitive and relaxation techniques in addition to VRE treatment were effective. More randomized clinical trials are required in which VRE therapy could be compared with standard exposure therapy. Thus, we suggest that CBT, psychoeducation, and VRE could be combined to treat FOF.
authors.affiliation: Panic and Respiration Laboratory, Institute of Psychiatry, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. faelthomaz@ig.com.br
authors.forename: Rafael T
authors.initials: RT
authors.lastname: da Costa
authors.forename: Aline
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sardinha
authors.forename: Antonio E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Nardi
mesh_terms: D000222:Adaptation, Physiological; D000337:Aerospace Medicine; D000401:Aircraft; D003198:Computer Simulation; D019992:Databases as Topic; D004781:Environmental Exposure; D005239:Fear / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D018471:Hypergravity; D011615:Psychotherapy, Group; D039781:PubMed; D014584:User-Computer Interface