Recruiting

Virtual Reality

Sponsor:

University of Maryland, Baltimore

Code:

NCT07189286

Conditions

Feasibility Studies

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 55+

Healthy Volunteers: Not accepted

Interventions

PAVE intervention

Education control

Study Details

Brief summary:

Each day in the hospital leads to functional decline and loss of muscle mass, which older adults can find difficult or impossible to restore in the post-acute period. The overall objective of this proposed project is to explore the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of a virtual reality physical activity intervention at helping older adults engage in physical activity and maintain physical function and mental health during their hospital stay. As virtual reality technology becomes more affordable and ubiquitously available across the world, this study will demonstrate how this technology could be leveraged to maintain the function of older adults in the hospital.

Conditions

Feasibility Studies

Study ID

NCT07189286

Start date

Feb 1, 2026

Status verified date

Apr, 2026

Completion date

Jan 1, 2030

Anticipated

Primary completion date

Feb 1, 2029

Anticipated

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 55+

Healthy Volunteers: Not accepted

Inclusion Criteria:

1. in the last 72 hours, they were admitted to the medical floor that is the setting of the study,
2. are 55 years or older,
3. their bedside nurse approves their physical activity participation in this study

Exclusion Criteria:

1. they are unable to pass the Evaluation to Sign Consent Measure,
2. they score 20 or lower on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment Basic,
3. they have an admitting diagnosis that could be worsened through virtual reality exercise,
4. they have an attached medical device that decreases the safety of physical activity such as a nasogastric tube or continuous fluids running through a PICC line that cannot be paused,
5. they are unable to follow commands or move their extremities against gravity during the UMove Mobility Assessment,
6. they are unable to wear the virtual reality headset,
7. they received the education control intervention or PAVE intervention during a prior admission,
8. there is an active plan to discharge this patient during day of recruitment or the following day,
9. they are on airborne or droplet precautions

Study Design

Enrollment

140 participants

Anticipated

Allocation

Non randomized

Intervention Model

Sequential

Primary purpose

Prevention

Interventions and Outcome Measures

Arms

experimental: PAVE intervention

PAVE participants will be trained to use the virtual reality headset and perform virtual reality physical activity throughout their hospital stay.

active comparator: Education control

Education control will receive physical activity education using the NIH "Get Fit for Life" booklet.

Interventions

PAVE intervention

The commercial virtual reality app that will be used for the intervention, Supernatural, provides participants a trainer as they use their arms and legs (e.g., seated knee strikes) to smash targets to 500+ musical tracks. In this manner, this study employs fun as a motivator for exercise commencement and adherence while hospitalized. The research assistant will implement the intervention using the three-step approach including: (1) patient mobility screen, (2) orientation to the technology and intervention, and (3) ongoing assessment, adaptation, and motivation.

Education control

Education control participants will receive and physical activity education using the NIH "Get Fit for Life" booklet.

Primary outcome measure

  • Feasibility: Acceptability of Intervention Measure [ Time Frame: measured at discharge or 7 days post baseline, whichever occurs first ]
  • Feasibility: Appropriateness of Intervention Measure [ Time Frame: measured at discharge or 7 days post baseline, whichever occurs first ]
  • Feasibility: Simulator Sickness Questionnaire [ Time Frame: measured following PAVE participants' first virtual reality session only; baseline only ]
  • Feasibility: Qualitative Interviews [ Time Frame: measured at discharge or 7 days post baseline, whichever occurs first (PAVE participants only) ]

Central Contacts and Locations

Central contacts

Brittany Burch, PhD, MSN, RN

4107063770bfburch@umaryland.edu

Locations

UMMC Midtown Campus

Recruiting

Baltimore, Maryland, United States, 21201

Contacts

Gyasi Moscou-Jackson, PhD, MHS, RN

410-328-8893gyasi.moscoujackson@umm.edu

More Information

Sponsor

University of Maryland, Baltimore

Last update posted

Apr 14, 2026

Last verified

Apr, 2026

Trial information was received from ClinicalTrials.gov and was last updated on 2026-09-10. This information was provided to ClinicalTrials.gov by University of Maryland, Baltimore on 2026-04-14.