FDA Releases New Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality Resources

U.S. Food and Drug Administration sent this bulletin at 09/01/2023 11:37 AM EDT

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Center for Devices and Radiological Health

FDA Releases New Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality Resources for Patients, Caregivers, and Health Care Professionals

Augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) headsets may be useful for more than just gaming. Increasingly, they are being used in health care settings as part of medical devices to treat patients with what it is called medical extended reality (XR).

Whether health care providers are using these XR devices to assist in surgery or in the treatment of lazy eye in children, for example, the increased use of these devices may leave you with plenty of questions. Don’t worry, we are here to help you figure out what questions to consider asking.

Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released two new infographics – to support patients and caregivers discussing the use of medical XR technology with their health care professionals, and to assist health care professionals deciding whether to use medical XR in their practice. Medical XR may help advance health equity by providing care outside of traditional health care settings such as at home or other non-clinical setting, or when a specialist is not locally available.

View Infographics

These resources are based on recommendations from our Patient Engagement Advisory Committee Meeting on AR/VR in 2022, where patients and health care professionals shared with the FDA what information they would want to know before using medical XR technology in their health care or practice.

Questions?

If you have questions about the AR/VR infographics, please contact the Digital Health Center of Excellence, email digitalhealth@fda.hhs.gov.

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