Immersive Technology and Virtual Reality as a Health Support Tool in a Residence for the Elderly

Development and Validation of Sports Facilities in a Supportive Environment to Improve the Well-being of the Elderly

The purpose of this clinical trial is to learn more about the potential for using virtual reality in older adults living in residences for elderly to maintain health (physical activity, cognitive activity, social behaviors). The main questions it aims to answer are:

• To what extent can virtual reality be a tool to support health in older adults?
• What are the support needs of older adults in learning to use this immersive technology?

Participants are invited to complete 5 weekly training sessions on the use of a virtual reality headset. At the beginning and end of each session, participants will complete a questionnaire on their perception of their experience. During the sessions, the participants are asked to test games that mobilize the upper limbs. Two learning modalities are set up in two separate groups. These modalities aim to test two different support formulas in order to compare the support needs of the elderly in the use and integration of virtual reality to support the activities and health of this population.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Aging Well
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: Individual assistance Virtual reality training sessions; Other: Collective assistance Virtual reality training sessions

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 34
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Canada
  • Quebec
    • Québec, Quebec, Canada, G1S1C1
      • Edith Martin

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Independent person living in the sponsor's retirement home

Exclusion Criteria:

• Having a pacemaker
• Being at risk for epilepsy

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Supportive Care
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Individual assistance; 5 sessions with individual assistance The Virtual Reality (VR) activity will take the form of five (5) weekly training sessions.; Session 1(day 1): Basics of VR.; Session 2(day 8): 1-multiplayer game mode.; Session 3(day 15): Playing with a library. Browsing a library; Session 4(day 22): 2-individual game mode.; Session 5(day 29): Game practice. For each session, in small groups of 3 people, it will be proposed to test games requiring only movements of the upper limbs of low to moderate intensity. Sitting will be mandatory for the tests in order to avoid falls.	Other: Individual assistance Virtual reality training sessions; 5 virtual reality training sessions where feedback will be provided to each individual by the research team
Experimental: Collective assistance; 4 sessions with collective assistance and 1 session with individual assistance (session 5) The Virtual Reality (VR) activity will take the form of five (5) training sessions.; Session 1(day 1): Basics of VR.; Session 2(day 8): 1-multiplayer game mode.; Session 3(day 15): Playing with a library. Browsing a library; Session 4(day 22): 2-individual game mode.; Session 5(day 29): Game practice. For each session, in small groups of 3 people, it will be proposed to test games requiring only movements of the upper limbs of low to moderate intensity. Sitting will be mandatory for the tests in order to avoid falls. The collective assistance group was abandonned because tests revealed issues with ability of participants to help each other during VR sessions. No participants were ever assigned to this group.	Other: Collective assistance Virtual reality training sessions; 4 virtual reality training sessions where feedback will be provided to the whole group by the research team and 1 session where feedback will be individual. No participant was ever assigned to this intervention.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Learning of Virtual Reality Tasks	Total score on 43 different tasks using a 5 point scale for each task(impossible(0), completion with external help(1), delay before individual completion and multiple repetitions(2), individual completion with less than 2 repetitions(3), individual completion without repetition(4) scored from 0 to 4 respectively). Scores for each session are averaged (Total score range from 0 to 4). Interpretations should be taken with caution(see Analysis population description).	During each 45 minutes intervention session on Session 1(Day 1), Session 2(Day 8), Session 3(Day 15), Session 4(Day 22), Session 5(Day 29)
Ease	Measurement of the perception of ease using a one item 5 point scale (higher score means higher ease during the session).Total score range from 1 to 5.	Immediately after each 45 minutes intervention session on Session 1(Day 1), Session 2(Day 8), Session 3(Day 15), Session 4(Day 22), Session 5(Day 29)
Sense of Control: Measurement of the Participants' Sense of Control Using a Scale From 1 to 5	measurement of the perception of sense of control using a one item 1-5 point scale (higher score means higher sense of control during the session).Total score range from 1 to 5.	Immediately after each 45 minutes intervention session on Session 1(Day 1), Session 2(Day 8), Session 3(Day 15), Session 4(Day 22), Session 5(Day 29)
Satisfaction With Supervision	measurement of the perception of satisfaction using a one item 5 point scale (higher score means higher satisfaction during the session). Total score range from 1 to 5.	Immediately after each 45 minutes intervention session on Session 1(Day 1), Session 2(Day 8), Session 3(Day 15), Session 4(Day 22), Session 5(Day 29)

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Stress Level at the Start of the Session	Measurement of the participants' stress level using a 1-item scale from 1 to 5 (lower score means higher stress), total scale range is 1 to 5	Immediately before each 45 minutes intervention session on Session 1(Day 1), Session 2(Day 8), Session 3(Day 15), Session 4(Day 22), Session 5(Day 29)
Desire to Play Virtual Reality Games	number of participants mentionning the desire to play virtual reality games	Immediately after each 45 minutes intervention session on Session 1(Day 1), Session 2(Day 8), Session 3(Day 15), Session 4(Day 22), Session 5(Day 29)

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: TOPMED
• Collaborators: Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, Canada; SEC Fonds Immobilier Groupe Maurice

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): February 27, 2023
• Primary Completion (Actual): April 16, 2024
• Study Completion (Actual): April 16, 2024

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: September 13, 2023
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: November 1, 2023
• First Posted (Actual): November 7, 2023

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimated): August 27, 2025
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 7, 2025
• Last Verified: August 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: learning; virtual reality; activity; Aging well
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Behavior; Motor Activity
• Other Study ID Numbers: RD-277_VR and elderly

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No