I-Corps: Treating Addiction with Virtual Reality

这个I-Corps项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力是为提供有效的药物滥用干预措施提供一种新的模式。该项目涉及一种新的基于虚拟现实的干预措施，将应用于药物滥用治疗。该团队计划调查客户对可集成到物质使用障碍治疗中的交钥匙软件干预的潜力。这种干预可以通过显着降低复发率来挽救生命和金钱。这个I-Corps项目探讨了虚拟现实如何成为一种立即可用的干预措施，以防止在渴望期间复发。初步采访表明，虚拟现实可以在短短30分钟的会议后调节情绪数小时或数天。物质滥用是对强烈负面情绪的适应不良反应-如果虚拟现实可以调节情绪，它可能会成为一种替代行为，可以在潜在的复发时刻寻求。预防复吸可以对抗阿片类药物的流行，也可以帮助数百万对其他物质成瘾的人。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is to provide a new modality for delivering effective substance abuse interventions. This project involves a novel virtual-reality based intervention to be applied in substance abuse treatment. The team plans to investigate customer potential for a turnkey software intervention that can be integrated into the treatment of substance use disorders. This intervention may save lives and money by significantly reducing relapse rates.This I-Corps project explores how virtual reality may be an immediately available intervention to prevent relapse during periods of craving. Preliminary interviews suggest that virtual reality can regulate emotion for a period of hours or days after a brief 30-minute session. Substance abuse develops as a maladaptive response to strong negative emotions - if virtual reality can regulate emotion, it may serve as an alternative behavior that can be sought during potential moments of relapse. Prevention of relapse could combat the opioid epidemic and also help the millions of people who are addicted to other substances.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.