Portable Virtual Reality Device Improves Neuroplasticity For Stroke Victims
The Mindmaze platform, developed by a spin-off of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL), enables the rehabilitation and personalized tracking of stroke victims through stimulating virtual reality exercises. The platform's device, named MindPlayPRO, allows clinicians and caregivers to effectively handle several patients simultaneously. Placed at the patient's bedside, the MindPlayPRO system has two screens on articulated arms. Caregivers can program the machine and obtain data from a high-resolution camera and track patient progress. The patient screen shows the 3D avatar of the patient with an exercise to perform – for example, to hit a target in the center of a colored circle. The accuracy required can be adapted according to the patient's specific challenges. The device makes the patient's brain believe that the immobilized body part is still working, which enables early reactivation of neuronal connections. After being tested tested at the University Hospital of Lausanne (CHUV) in Switzerland for two years, MindPlayPRO is now being introduced into the market.