PainDroid: an android-based virtual reality application for pain assessment

• DOI: 10.1007/s11042-013-1358-3
• Publication Date: 2013-01-09T17:18:40Z
• Authors: Fotios Spyridonis; Jarle Hansen; Tor-Morten Grønli; Gheorghita Ghinea
• Keywords: USable; Pain Assessment; Android application

Earlier studies in the field of pain research suggest that little efficient intervention currently exists in response to the exponential increase in the prevalence of pain. In this paper, we present an Android application (PainDroid) with multimodal functionality that could be enhanced with Virtual Reality (VR) technology, which has been designed for the purpose of improving the assessment of this notoriously difficult medical concern. PainDroid has been evaluated for its usability and acceptability with a pilot group of potential users and clinicians, with initial results suggesting that it can be an effective and usable tool for improving the assessment of pain. Participant experiences indicated that the application was easy to use and the potential of the application was similarly appreciated by the clinicians involved in the evaluation. Our findings may be of considerable interest to healthcare providers, policy makers, and other parties that might be actively involved in the area of pain and VR research.