Psychometric and Physiological Assessment of the Effects of Virtual Reality in Cardiovascular Rehabilitation: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Background: Virtual reality (VR) is a promising tool for cardiac rehabilitation, but conflicting results have been reported in the literature. Methods: A Randomized Controlled Trial was conducted on 60 subjects undergoing a cardiac rehabilitation program. The experimental group replaced 20 daily minutes of the therapy with virtual car driving simulation sessions. Both groups received the same amount of therapy time. Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), the Short Form 12 questionnaire for quality of life, and other clinical scales were administered to assess the efficacy of integrating VR into the rehabilitative intervention. Results: HADS-score (p<0.001) and quality of life (p<0.02) significantly improved only in the VR group, whereas other parameters such as pain, perceived exertion and oxygen saturation improved in both groups. Conclusions: VR resulted effective in improving patients’ conditions, likely due to its high level of engagement. When assessing the effects of a VR system, it is important to consider the specific software with the exergame and the tasks administered: in this study, we selected a car driving simulation, which yielded positive effects.