Wearable technology has come a long way from basic pedometers to count steps. It now encompasses such devices as Fitbits or even apps on the smartphone you carry in your pocket. The technology is expanding to prosthetics and rehabilitative devices like the “Smart Glove,” which is used patients who have musculoskeletal injuries or are recovering from a stroke. Now, virtual reality technology (VR) may provide some improvements in treating workplace injuries.

In a new partnership to test digital tools in the treatment of acute orthopedic injuries, the Travelers Companies, Inc., announced on March 6 that it's collaborating with Cedars-Sinai, Samsung Electronics America, Bayer and appliedVR. According to the announcement, the partnership will explore the effectiveness of a digital pain-reduction kit that uses therapeutic VR and wearable technology as a “non-pharmacological supplement to managing pain associated with acute orthopedic injuries of the lower back and extremities.”

The clinical research project, to be conducted by Cedars-Sinai's Center for Outcomes Research and Education and Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, will take 16 months and include between 90 and 140 participants, ages 18 to 65. The partners believe that the research will help medical and workers' comp professionals understand how leveraging state-of-the-art technology will improve outcomes for injured workers.