Virtual reality exposure using three-dimensional images for the treatment of social phobia

• Autor(a) principal: Gebara,Cristiane M.
• Data de Publicação: 2016
• Outros Autores: Barros-Neto,Tito P. de, Gertsenchtein,Leticia, Lotufo-Neto,Francisco
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Brazilian Journal of Psychiatry (São Paulo. 1999. Online)
• Texto Completo: http://old.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1516-44462016000100024
• topic: Social phobia; cognitive behavioral therapy; virtual reality exposure; anxiety

Objective: To test a potential treatment for social phobia, which provides exposure to phobia-inducing situations via computer-generated, three-dimensional images, using an open clinical trial design. Methods: Twenty-one patients with a DSM-IV diagnosis of social phobia took part in the trial. Treatment consisted of up to 12 sessions of exposure to relevant images, each session lasting 50 minutes. Results: Improvements in social anxiety were seen in all scales and instruments used, including at follow-up 6 months after the end of treatment. The average number of sessions was seven, as the participants habituated rapidly to the process. Only one participant dropped out. Conclusion: This study provides evidence that exposure to computer-generated three-dimensional images is relatively inexpensive, leads to greater treatment adherence, and can reduce social anxiety. Further studies are needed to corroborate these findings.