Non-pharmacological treatment uses immersive virtual reality to deliver a new standard of care for injured workers suffering from chronic lower back pain (CLBP).
LOS ANGELES–(BUSINESS WIRE)–#VR—AppliedVR, a pioneer in immersive therapeutics advancing a novel approach to medicine, has launched its flagship RelieVRx® prescription therapeutic into workers’ compensation. The RelieVRx device is the first comprehensive, immersive adjunctive virtual reality treatment for chronic lower back pain to ever be FDA-authorized.
The RelieVRx device provides a fully immersive VR experience that helps workers’ compensation patients learn skills that help them reduce and manage CLBP. It is a cost-effective, non-pharmacologic adjunctive pain therapy that has been clinically demonstrated to reduce pain intensity and interference.
“The RelieVRx program is a safe and effective alternative to common treatment modalities without any of the risks that opioids and surgeries carry,” said AppliedVR’s Co-Founder and President Josh Sackman. “We believe this program will receive broad acceptance in the workers’ comp community.”
The RelieVRx program incorporates scientifically developed and validated principles of cognitive behavioral therapy, biofeedback, and emotional regulation to teach people how to manage and relieve their pain. A team of clinicians, pain specialists and psychologists led by Stanford University School of Medicine Professor Beth Darnall, PhD, developed the therapeutic program used by RelieVRx.
From the comfort of their homes, injured workers follow a series of 56 chapters averaging approximately six minutes each. Each session builds upon the last to induce neuroplasticity, which helps to regulate the neural regions of the brain that are associated with pain.
AppliedVR has conducted extensive clinical research evaluating the RelieVRx program’s efficacy, including a large study with more than 1,000 participants that recently published in the Mayo Clinical Proceedings: Digital Health. Studies show that the device produces clinically meaningful reductions in both pain intensity and its interference with activities, sleep, mood, and stress both at end of treatment and 24 months post treatment.
In 2021, the RelieVRx program became the first and only FDA-authorized VR therapeutic for CLBP, and two years later AppliedVR became the first virtual reality provider to receive a unique Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) Level II code from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services for RelieVRx. Additionally, the RelieVRx program has been added to the Federal Supply Schedule and has been used by the Veterans Health Administration nationwide since early 2023.
To learn more about the workers’ compensation program, please see Workers Comp | RelieVRx.
About AppliedVR
Based in Van Nuys, California, AppliedVR is a pioneer in immersive therapeutics (ITx), a new category of medicine that treats intractable health conditions. Its flagship RelieVRx program is the first and only VR-based prescription therapeutic to receive Breakthrough Device and De Novo authorization by the FDA for CLBP. AppliedVR’s wellness programs have been trusted by more than 200 leading health systems and thousands of healthcare professionals globally, used by more than 60,000 patients. For more information, visit https://www.appliedvr.io/.
Contacts
Helen King Patterson, King Knight Communications, 813-690-4787, helen@kingknight.com
