Virtual Reality PTSD Therapy Awarded Research Funding by U.S. Navy Office

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Pacific Telehealth & Technology Hui (Hui) announced that an innovative behavioral health initiative that uses virtual reality (VR) therapy to treat post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in warfighters returning from Iraq and Afghanistan has been awarded $1.3 million in research funding as part of the Warfighter Mental Health Program at The Medical and Biological Science and Technology Division of the Office of Naval Research.


The project, 'Efficacy of Virtual Reality in Treating Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in U.S. Warfighters Returning from Iraq and Afghanistan Combat Theaters,' is a collaborative research project with the VA Pacific Islands Health Care System and Tripler Army Medical Center. The research initiative is the first to explore the use of VR to treat PTSD in returning warfighters.

PTSD is one of the most disabling psychological disorders affecting U.S. soldiers and veterans who have been exposed to combat. Three decades after the end of the Vietnam War, an estimated 839,000 veterans still suffer from chronic, combat-related PTSD. Because of the enormous burden PTSD places on the military and veterans, the U.S. Department of Defense and VA have placed a significant emphasis on early diagnosis and treatment of PTSD.

Sarah D. Miyahira, Ph.D., VA principal investigator and Hui director of intramural research, explains, "To date, most of the research on PTSD has been conducted on veterans. But the sooner we are able to diagnose soldiers with combat-related PTSD and treat them, the greater the prognosis for success."

Psychologists utilize cognitive behavioral therapy to treat behavioral health conditions like PTSD. Patients are exposed to real-life images of feared events in order to facilitate the cognitive and emotional healing needed for recovery. VR exposure therapy is used to augment traditional treatment approaches. By giving therapists a tool which allows them to guide a patient through a highly immersive virtual environment that triggers the intense sights, sounds and other sensory experiences they may have undergone in the original conflict, the patient can recall and deal with their memories of the traumatic events more effectively.