ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Pain Res.
Sec. Non-Pharmacological Treatment of Pain
Volume 6 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpain.2025.1600637
This article is part of the Research TopicEducational Strategies and Multimodal Treatments for Effective Management of Temporomandibular Disorders and Orofacial PainView all 3 articles
AUGMENTED REALITY FOR CHRONIC BACK PAIN Feasibility and User Experience of Augmented Reality Psychoeducation and Mindfulness Body Scan for Chronic Low Back Pain
Provisionally accepted
- 1University of Trier, Trier, Germany
- 2Department of Diagnostics in Healthcare & eHealth, Trier University, Germany, Trier, Germany
- 3Department of Computer Science, University of Applied Sciences Trier, Trier, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany
- 4Department of Computer Science / Therapeutic Sciences, Trier University of Applied Sciences, Germany, Trier, Germany
- 5Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Mainz, Mainz, Germany, Mainz, Germany
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1.AbstractBackground: Chronic low back pain (CLBP) is prevalent and a multimodal therapy is indicated, including psychological treatment. Effective conventional treatments involve psychoeducation and mindfulness-based body scans, while virtual reality offers superior but temporary pain relief. Augmented Reality (AR), which combines conventional and virtual methods, is a novel therapeutic strategy. Methods: We investigated the viability and acceptability of an AR intervention for CLBP by incorporating psychoeducation and mindfulness-based body scan techniques. 40 participants in two studies with a one-arm design underwent an educational AR intervention (Study I, n1 = 18) and an enhanced version with an additional body scan (Study II, n2 = 22). The studies focused on evaluating technical feasibility and multiple facets of user experience. Results: The results demonstrated high feasibility with low dropout rates (Study I: 10%, Study II: 0%). User experience ratings ranged from "Above Average" to "Excellent," with the advanced intervention receiving higher ratings. While Study I showed no significant changes in affect pre- vs. post-intervention, Study II exhibited a significant reduction in negative affect and improved valence. Qualitative analysis provided insights into technical requirements and user perceptions. Discussion: The AR prototype emerges as a promising psychoeducational tool for CLBP, aligning with current treatment guidelines and providing a basis for future controlled clinical trials. Limitations include the absence of a high-pain intervention group, as Study I reported a pain intensity of M = 1.05 and Study II reported M = 1.77 (Range:0-10). Further research such as clinical trials with control groups is required to validate the efficacy of the piloted approach. The AR-based psychoeducation and mindfulness body scan intervention for CLBP demonstrated technical feasibility and a good user experience.
Keywords: augmented reality, Chronic low back pain, Pain education, Mindfulness Body Scan, User Experience, Feasibility Trial registration: Open Science Framework.io;
Received: 26 Mar 2025; Accepted: 16 Jun 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Conen, Hepke, Lohscheller, Mueller and Tibubos. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Robin Conen, University of Trier, Trier, Germany
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