This study is concerned with the application of virtual reality (VR) in rehabilitation programs for faulty neck posture which is a primary source of neck pain (NP). The latter is a highly prevalent musculoskeletal disorder that is associated with serious societal and economic burden. VR has been shown to be effective in the physical rehabilitation of various diseases. Specifically, it has been shown to improve the adherence of patients and engagement to carry out physical exercises on a regular basis. Many games have been used to manage NP with different immersion levels. Towards this goal, we present a VR-based system that targets a specific neck problem, the so called forward head posture (FHP), which is a faulty head position that abnormally stresses neck structures. The system can also generalize well to other neck-related disorders and rehabilitation goals. We show the steps for designing and developing the system, and we highlight the aspects of interaction between usability and various game elements. Using a three-point scale for user experience, we also present preliminary insights on the evaluation of the system prototype, and we discuss future enhancement directions based on the feedback from users.

翻译：本研究关注虚拟现实（VR）在不良颈部姿势康复项目中的应用，不良颈部姿势是颈痛（NP）的主要来源。颈痛是一种高发肌肉骨骼疾病，给社会和经济带来沉重负担。VR已被证实可有效促进多种疾病的物理康复，尤其能提升患者定期进行体育锻炼的依从性和参与度。目前已有多种不同沉浸程度的游戏用于管理颈痛。为此，我们提出一个基于VR的系统，专门针对特定颈部问题——所谓的前倾头姿势（FHP），这是一种异常的头颈位置，会对颈部结构造成非正常应力。该系统还能良好地适用于其他颈部相关疾病及康复目标。我们阐述了系统设计与开发的步骤，并重点分析了可用性与各种游戏元素之间的交互关系。通过采用三级用户体验评分量表，我们初步展示了系统原型的评估结果，并基于用户反馈讨论了未来的改进方向。