Brain-Computer Interface Based Engagement Feedback in Virtual Reality Rehabilitation: Promoting Motor Cortex Activation

Maintaining optimal levels of engagement during rehabilitation training is crucial for inducing neuroplasticity in the motor cortex, which directly influences positive rehabilitation outcomes. In this research article, we propose a virtual reality (VR) rehabilitation system that incorporates a steady-state visual evoked potential (SSVEP) paradigm to provide engagement feedback. The system utilizes a flickering target and cursor to detect the user’s engagement levels during a target-tracking task. Eighteen healthy participants were recruited to experience three experimental conditions: no feedback (NoF), performance feedback (PF), and neurofeedback (NF). Our results reveal significantly greater Mu suppression in the NF condition compared to the other conditions. However, no significant differences were observed in performance metrics, such as tracking error, among the three conditions. The amount of feedback between the PF and NF conditions also showed no substantial difference. These findings suggest the efficacy of our SSVEP-based engagement feedback paradigm in stimulating motor cortex activity during rehabilitation. Consequently, we conclude that neurofeedback, based on the user’s attentional state, proves to be more effective in promoting motor cortex activation and facilitating neuroplastic changes. This research highlights the potential of integrating VR rehabilitation with an engagement feedback system for successful rehabilitation training.