Virtual Rehabilitation for Patients with Osteoporosis: Translating Physiotherapy Exercises into Exergames

Osteoporosis affects over 200 million people worldwide; osteoporotic fractures occur every three seconds. Physical therapy is a non-pharmaceutical approach to improving; muscle strength, balance and flexibility, thereby reducing the risk of falls and fractures. However, engagement in physical therapy can be challenging due to factors including accessibility, cost, fear and/or boredom. Virtual rehabilitation, incorporating extended reality, and exergames, has emerged as a promising solution to enhance and address engagement issues with traditional physical therapy. In this paper, the authors propose a set of five safe and clinically approved physical exercises targeting older adults with osteoporosis. Underpinned by guidelines derived from a systematic review on virtual
rehabilitation and compliant with HSE care guidelines and the concept of ‘good’ movement, these exercises were reproduced in AR as exergames using the Microsoft Hololens 2 head-mounted display and the Azure Kinect camera. Through the integration of expert knowledge and technology, this research contributes to the development of adapted virtual rehabilitation interventions for patients with osteoporosis.