Immersive virtual reality is effective in improving the physical condition and quality of life of sedentary university students: A randomized clinical trial

Abstract

Objective: To analyze the effects of immersive virtual reality training compared to conventional training on conditioning and quality of life of sedentary university students. Design: A randomized controlled trial with two intervention arms, concealed allocation, per protocol analysis, and blinded assessment. Results: In the intragroup analysis of physical conditioning using the shuttle walk test, the experimental group increased by 77.78 meters (95% CI, 25.3m to 130.1m) and the 6-minute walk test the control group improved by 89.92m (95% CI, 33.3m 146.5m). Both groups improved in assessments of quality of life in the physical domain, with increases in scores of 65.49 (95% CI 56.48 to 74.49) and 63.79 (95% CI 51.36 to 76.22); in the psychological domain, an increase of 12.96 (95% CI 3.84 to 22.08) and 14.81 (95% CI 4.42 t 25.20); and, in the general assessment of quality of life, an increase of 88.75 (95% CI59.9 to 117.6) and 81.84 (95% CI 36.5 to 127.1), in the experimental group and the control group, respectively. After two months, there was a maintenance of gains. Conclusion: Immersive virtual reality training and conventional training have the same effect on the improvement of physical conditioning and quality of life in sedentary university students.