Skip to main content
OpenTrials
Completed

NCT Number: NCT05043909

The Effects of Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality Training System on Elderly Oral Care Skill for Oral Hygiene and Nursing Students

Virtual reality (VR) has been proposed as a promising technology for education since the combination of immersive and interactive features enables experiential learning. The study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of VR-based training on oral health care for dependency elderly among oral hygiene students.

Completed

Looking for future studies?

Notify Me

Key information

Conditions

Medical Education

Age range

20 year–21 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

Kaohsiung Medical University

Kaohsiung City, San Min District, Taiwan

About this study

A randomized controlled trial was conducted. Overall, the study recruited students from third grade of Department of Oral Hygiene students in Kaohsiung Medical University during 2021. The participants were randomly assigned to virtual-reality experimental (EG; n = 11) and control (CG; n = 12) groups. The students in EG received a 2-hour VR training for elderly oral health care at 2-week (Time 2), 4-week (Time 3) and 6-week (Time 4) follow-ups. Each student collected the data by a self-administrated questionnaire before and immediately after each of the intervention. Linear regression in generalized estimating equations (GEE) compare the differences between both groups.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • third grade of Department of Oral Hygiene students in Kaohsiung Medical University during the 2021 academic semester
  • Participants have to take both the courses of 'Basic Medical Nursing Care' and 'Oral Health Care for Community People and Long-term Care Residents' before intervention.

Exclusion criteria

  • none

Treatment and study plan

VR-based training

Behavioral

Students simulate the different physical and oral conditions of the elderly through virtual situations and provide suitable oral care methods. The whole training session took approximately two hours for each student; First, students were first given a short introduction to the VR system's use (10 minutes). Second, they were able to carry out oral care for the elderly while wearing VR goggles and using hand-controllers with the teaching and audio guides during the process (90 minutes), and an evaluation was taken after the intervention (20 minutes).

Primary outcomes

  1. Elderly oral care-related knowledge

    Time frame: Change from Baseline knowledge at 2-, 4-, 6-week follow-ups after the interventions

    Twenty items measured elderly oral care-related knowledge; for example, 'There is no need to consider the size of the interdental brush.' Possible responses included True (1), False (0), and I do not know (0), with possible scores ranged from 0 to 20; a higher score indicated a higher degree of oral-care-related knowledge. The KR-20 coefficient was 0.56 for this scale

  2. Attitude toward elderly oral care

    Time frame: Change from Baseline attitude at 2-, 4-, 6-week follow-ups after the interventions

    Seven items measured attitude toward elderly oral care, for example, 'Assist disabled elderly to clean their teeth is annoying.' Each item was scored on a five-point Likert-type scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree). Possible scores ranged from 5 to 35; a higher score indicated a more positive attitude toward oral care for the elderly. Cronbach's alpha was 0.70 for this scale.

  3. Self-efficacy of elderly oral care

    Time frame: Change from Baseline self-efficacy at 2-, 4-, 6-week follow-ups after the interventions

    Eleven items were used to evaluate the self-efficacy of elderly oral care. Students indicated their degrees of agreement with statements related to perceptions of personal ability concerning oral care for the elderly. For example, 'I am confident to remind disable elderly having regular dental visits every six months.' Each item was scored on a five-point Likert-type scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree). Possible scores ranged from 5 to 55; a higher score indicated more substantial confidence toward oral care for the elderly. Cronbach's alpha was 0.87 for this scale.

  4. Intention to elderly oral care behaviors

    Time frame: Change from Baseline intentions at 2-, 4-, 6-week follow-ups after the interventions

    Twelve items were used to evaluate the intention to elderly oral care behavior for elderly. Students indicated their goals of adding new behaviors or modifying existing behaviors of oral care for the elderly. For example, 'I will take the initiative to assist disabled elderly to clean their dentures.' Each item was scored on a five-point Likert-type scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree).

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Kaohsiung Medical University Chung-Ho Memorial Hospital

Other

Registry information

Official study title

Virtual Reality Training System on Oral Health Care for Dependency Elderly in Oral Hygiene Students: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Important dates

Study start
2020
Primary completion
2021
Study completion
2021
First posted
Sep 14, 2021
Registry last updated
Sep 14, 2021

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

Related clinical trials

Published trials that share one or more normalized conditions with this study.