General Introduction

Abstract

Section II focuses mainly on the use of virtual reality (VR) or augmented reality in the field of orthopedic rehabilitation, as well as the integration of virtual reality into tele-rehabilitation. The latter is important to ensure that patients living in far away rural areas will not be denied proper rehabilitation after surgery, particularly in less affluent countries. In this section, we will first discuss the nature, types, importance, and clinical applications of virtual reality, followed by a briefing of the common components and set-up. Then follows a series of clinical examples ranging from the use of VR in preoperative planning of orthopedic surgery, its usefulness in the teaching of present and future surgeons on a virtual patient, the use of VR in increasing the intraoperative placement of implants and testing of the stability of a construct like virtual ACL impingement, and, most importantly, highlighting the use of VR in the field of orthopedic rehabilitation, whether it involves a postoperative patient, or for non-operative orthopedic rehabilitation.