Digital Support for Mental Health Intervention in Patients With Inflammatory Bowel Disease

The mental health support session is delivered by a virtual reality digital wellness application (app). The app is a Chat GPT-4 powered AI and VR platform called XAIA (eXtended reality Artificially Intelligent Ally). [Chat GPT is an AI program that generates dialogue.] The app is publicly available on the Apple Vision Pro (a VR tool). It was developed by a group of providers, including a psychiatrist, at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center to devise a scalable solution for the increasing demand for mental wellness experiences. The application uses the combination of an AI-powered virtual avatar, named "XAIA," and a VR environment to deliver immersive and personalized mental health support in mixed-reality environments.

This is a mixed method study with primarily a qualitative focus. Patients with IBD who self-report mild to moderate levels of anxiety or depression will be invited to try a single AI-VR mental health support session using the XAIA app. Participant observations, experiences, and opinions of the application will be collected through surveys and semi-structured interviews. Pre- and post- session pain and state anxiety scores will be collected.

Inclusion criteria

• 18+ years of age
• Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (Crohn's Disease or Ulcerative Colitis)
• English-speaking
• Patients with score of 5-14 on General Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) questionnaire or 5-19 on Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) within 3 months
• Able to provide written consent

Exclusion criteria

• Unwilling and/or unable to participate
• Non-English speakers
• Self-reported history of severe motion sickness
• The presence of a facial/head deformity that will prohibit comfortably wearing of a VR headset
• Legally blind or deaf
• Having had a seizure in the past year
• Unable to understand the instructions or to consent to participation in the study.
• Those who are pregnant