Jun 22, 2017Rehab Goes Virtual
The athletic training staff for the University of Alabama football team has a new tool in their rehab arsenal — virtual reality. The 3-D games that are available through virtual reality are now changing how players work on rehab exercises.
“What we’ve been doing as a medical staff is trying to figure out a way that we can take those virtual reality games and incorporate different rehab exercises into those games that focus on balance, vision, and reaction time,” Jeff Allen, MS, ATC, Assistant Athletic Director for Sports Medicine and Head Football Athletic Trainer, told WBRC-FOX 6 News in Birmingham, Ala.
Getting started with virtual reality took months. After getting the idea, the medical staff spent time with testing before launching its virtual reality rehab.
“One thing that drew us to virtual reality was Coach [Nick] Saban’s attitude, wanting to be on the cutting edge in everything we do in every area,” said Allen. “So we were thinking, ‘What can we do differently to change the game a little bit in relation to rehab?’
So far
