A therapy that uses immersive virtual reality (VR) may provide lasting treatment for distressing fear and phobias in children with autism, a study claims.
The Blue Room therapy, developed by specialists at Newcastle University in the UK working alongside innovative technology firm Third Eye NeuroTech, allows the team to create a personalised 360 degree environment involving the fear which may debilitate the person with autism in real life.
Within this virtual environment, which requires no goggles, the child can comfortably investigate and navigate through various scenarios working with a therapist using tablet controls but remain in full control of the situation, according to the study published in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.
"For many children and their families, anxiety can rule their lives as they try to avoid the situations which can trigger their child's fears or phobia," said Professor Jeremy Parr, who led the study.
Autism can affect a child's learning and development, often resulting in impaired social and communication skills and many also have fears or phobias which can be very distressing but are often overlooked.
It is thought these phobias affect around 25 per cent of children with autism. In the trial phobias included travelling on public transport, school classrooms, dogs and balloons.
The randomised controlled trial involved 32 children with autism aged 8-14 years. Half received treatment in the Blue Room and half acted as a control group, receiving delayed treatment six months later.
Accompanied by a psychologist they underwent four sessions in a week involving a personalised scenario in the Blue Room. Parents were able to watch the treatment via a video link.
"People with autism can find imagining a scene difficult which is why the Blue Room is so well-received. We are providing the feared situation in a controlled way through virtual reality and we are sitting alongside them to help them learn how to manage their fears," said Morag Maskey from the Newcastle University.
"It is incredibly rewarding to see the effect it can have for some, overcoming a situation which just a week previously would have been so distressing," Maskey said.
After receiving the treatment and with the support of their parents, the children were then introduced to the scenario in the real world.
Two weeks after treatment, the research shows that four of the first 16 (25 per cent) had responded to treatment and were able to cope with a specific phobia.
This effect remained with a total of six showing improvement after six months (38 per cent), however, one reported a worsening of phobia.
In the control group, five untreated participants had become worse in the six months, researchers said.
The control group went on to be treated in the Blue Room after this time. Results showed that overall 40 per cent of children treated showed improvement at two weeks, and 45 per cent at six months.
This improvement is comparable with other treatments and the team intends to further examine why some do not respond.
