Effects of Virtual Reality-Based Physical And Psychological Exercise On Depression In Stroke Patients : A Meta-Analysis

Background: Virtual Reality (VR) has been widely used in health-related fields. The aim of this study was to assess the effectiveness of virtual reality-based physical and psychological exercise on depression.Methods: A total of 752 patients with stroke from 11 randomized controlled trial (RCT) studies were included in this meta-analysis and the studies derived from 6 electronic databases searched from database inception to August 2021. For continuous results, the standardized mean differences (SMDs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated to synthesize the effects.Results: The meta-analysis showed that compared with control group, VR-based interventions significantly decreased the depression scale score (SMD = −0.71, 95% CI: −1.32, −0.10) in the subjects. The results showed that the the patient age and total intervention time had a significant impact on the outcome of depression. The smaller the age and longer the intervention duration, the greater the impact on the outcome of depression.Conclusions: The current meta-analysis indicated the virtual reality-based physical and psychological exercise has a significant effect on depression in stroke patients compared to controls. The study showed an outstanding reduction in depression for aged under 60 participants and intervention longer than 8 weeks. At the same time, clinical studies of different ages and different intervention time also need further in-depth study.