Researchers develop ‘crucial’ VR eye-tracking to enhance children’s MRI scans

Researchers at King’s College London have developed an eye-tracking virtual reality system to allow young children undergoing MRI scanning to engage and focus.

The team hope that the gaze-tracking technology will allow for instant interaction with the system by the children, preventing the discomfort normally associated with “noisy, stressful” MRI scans.

Children undergoing MRI scans can be prone to movement thanks to this discomfort, which can cause scan failure.

'Reducing anxiety and minimising movement'

Eye-tracking VR allows for instant interaction, which the team explained is “crucial as it quickly engages children with VR, reducing anxiety and minimising movement”.

The team added: “Young children have a high need for immediate and continuous use, particularly in the context of an MRI examination.”

The technology enables human-computer interaction without any set-up, meaning children undergoing MRI scans do not have to engage with administrative tasks before they are immersed in the VR experience.

'Crucial for immersion'

According to the study, published in open access journal Scientific Reports, the novel system has been successfully tested on 23 children aged two to 13, allowing them to play games and watch films during MRI using only their eyes.

To interact with the technology, the child holds their gaze on the items on the screen, triggering interaction with a variety of activities.

“Maintaining a continuous sense of control is crucial for immersion in the VR system,” the team added. “Therefore, the innovative eye tracking system updates itself based on user interaction. The more the child interacts, the more accurate the gaze estimation becomes.”

Combining innovation

The VR experience aims to reduce a child's tendency to move their head during the scan as much as possible, but not all head movement can be eliminated.

To remedy this, the team used the DISORDER method previously developed at King’s College London for baby MRI scans, which retrospectively performs motion correction on scanned images.

Combining these two innovations allows for a system that can acquire high-quality brain MR images from awake young children.

Dr Kun Qian, post-doctoral researcher in the Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences, and study lead-author, explained this development shows immense promise for the future.

He said: “Our new technology shows promise to solve virtually all of the limitations of existing systems. Our approach opens new possibilities for awake MR studies in young children for both clinical and research purposes, potentially reducing the need for non-trivial interventions like anaesthesia and enabling a new generation of MR based studies of awake brain processing in this formative period of life.”

(Image: King's College London)