Virtual reality neurophysiology pilot at the University of Louisville School of Medicine.

Bringing immersive VR to physiology education.

iXRLabs' virtual reality (VR) module for Neurophysiology was evaluated in a pilot study at the University of Louisville School of Medicine. Graduate student Leonardo Almonor, from the Department of Physiology, collaborated with Dr. Daniela Terson de Paleville to test whether immersive VR could deepen students' understanding of complex physiological systems. The pilot - "Implementing Virtual Reality (VR) as a Tool for Learning Neurophysiology" - reported improved test performance, high usability and satisfaction, and confirmed that iXRLabs' application can be feasibly integrated into the curriculum. Participants rated it highly easy to use (mean score of 85/100), every participant found the lesson enjoyable, and none found it useless.

Physiology is built on processes you can't see.

Physiology - and neurophysiology in particular - rests on processes that are invisible and dynamic: nerve signal transmission, feedback loops, and the coordination of systems unfolding over time. Static diagrams and text leave students to imagine how these processes actually behave, which is where understanding often breaks down.

There is also a tooling gap. Immersive applications have proliferated for anatomy, patient care, and surgery, but far fewer exist for physiology - leaving educators who want students to actively explore how living systems function without a ready immersive option.

A purpose-built VR Neurophysiology module.

iXRLabs' VR Neurophysiology module lets students step into and interact with physiological systems rather than read about them. The application is lightweight, downloads quickly, and is designed to be easy to pick up - so it slots into an active-learning session without heavy setup. At the University of Louisville's Physiology Active Learning Lab (PAL Lab), the module was used to reinforce neurophysiology concepts for graduate and dental students as part of the course's hands-on approach.

Researcher-led, embedded in real coursework.

The pilot was researcher-led and built into an existing course rather than run as a standalone demo. Graduate student Leonardo Almonor and Dr. Terson de Paleville designed the evaluation around the PAL Lab's goals, then measured how students perceived the VR lesson and how easy they found it to use. That grounding in active-learning coursework is what allowed the team to capture meaningful perception and usability data.

What the participants reported.

After the VR neurophysiology session, participants were surveyed on how they perceived VR as a learning tool and how easy the application was to use.

Responses skewed strongly positive: every participant (100%) called it enjoyable, and 90% found it interesting and useful. Negative descriptors were uncommon, and no participant found the activity useless .

A mean of 85 sits well into the "easy" range - consistent with the goal of a lightweight, quick-to-learn tool. Low friction matters for adoption: an application students can pick up in minutes is one faculty can actually fit into a class session.

Perception of VR as a learning tool. Responses skewed strongly positive. Every participant (100%) described the VR lesson as enjoyable, and 90% found it both interesting and useful. Smaller shares called it enlightening (60%) or fulfilling (50%), while negative descriptors were uncommon - a minority found it cumbersome (25%), and few reported it taxing (10%), overstimulating, or confusing (5% each). Critically, no participant found the activity useless.

Ease of use. On a 1-100 scale where 100 is extremely easy to use, the application earned a mean score of 85 (+/- 14) - well into the "easy" range and consistent with the goal of a lightweight, quick-to-learn tool. Low friction matters for adoption: an application students can pick up in minutes is one faculty can actually fit into a class session.

Peer-reviewed and presented.

The pilot's findings have been published by the American Physiological Society, and the work was presented at the 18th Annual Graduate Student Regional Research Conference at the University of Louisville's Belknap Campus, which drew participants from institutions across the country.

Daniela Terson de Paleville and Hayley Benson

Physiology , 2026, Vol. 41, Supplement 1 - American Physiological Society doi.org/10.1152/physiol.2026.41.S1.2299577

• Virtual Reality for Reinforcing Neurophysiology Concepts among Graduate and Dental Students Daniela Terson de Paleville and Hayley Benson

What the pilot showed.

100% found the VR lesson enjoyable, 90% found it interesting and useful, and none found it useless.

The application scored a mean of 85/100 for ease of use - a lightweight tool students pick up fast.

The pilot reported improved test performance alongside high satisfaction.

VR slotted into an active-learning physiology course rather than running as a one-off demo.

Purpose-built physiology VR, where most immersive tools focus on anatomy or surgery.

Findings published by the American Physiological Society and presented at a regional research conference.

• Strong student perception 100% found the VR lesson enjoyable, 90% found it interesting and useful, and none found it useless.

• Highly usable The application scored a mean of 85/100 for ease of use - a lightweight tool students pick up fast.

• Real learning impact The pilot reported improved test performance alongside high satisfaction.

• Feasible to integrate VR slotted into an active-learning physiology course rather than running as a one-off demo.

• Fills a gap Purpose-built physiology VR, where most immersive tools focus on anatomy or surgery.

• Research-validated Findings published by the American Physiological Society and presented at a regional research conference.

About the University of Louisville School of Medicine.

The University of Louisville School of Medicine, in Louisville, Kentucky, is the medical school of the University of Louisville, a public research university. Established in 1837, it is one of the oldest medical schools in North America and has a long record of clinical innovation. Within its Department of Physiology, Dr. Daniela Terson de Paleville - a Professor who teaches Neurophysiology and mentors graduate, medical, and dental students - leads the Physiology Active Learning Lab (PAL Lab), focused on increasing physiology understanding through active, hands-on learning.

A research-validated path for physiology VR.

Physiology education has lacked the immersive tools that anatomy and surgical training enjoy. This pilot shows that purpose-built physiology VR can close that gap - earning near-universal student approval, high usability scores, and measurable learning gains while fitting into an existing curriculum. For departments weighing immersive learning, it is evidence that VR can move beyond novelty into a practical, research-validated part of how physiology is taught.

Immersive learning backed by published research

What distinguishes the University of Louisville deployment is that its outcomes were formally studied and published. The VR physiology lesson was not only delivered but evaluated, and the findings were peer-reviewed and disseminated through the American Physiological Society - moving the case for immersive learning from anecdote to evidence.

That evidence base matters. Immersive learning is often justified on intuition and enthusiasm, but faculty and institutions making adoption decisions need measured outcomes. A published study of student perception and learning gives that decision a firmer footing than a demonstration ever could.

Why physiology suits immersive teaching

Neurophysiology and physiology deal with processes that are dynamic, three-dimensional and impossible to observe directly - exactly the kind of content where a static diagram or a lecture struggles and an interactive, immersive representation excels. Letting students explore these processes interactively fills a genuine gap in how the subject can be taught, which is why the student response was so positive.

The strongly favourable survey results - with every participant finding the lesson enjoyable and a large majority finding it interesting and useful - are consistent with a wider pattern: immersive teaching helps most precisely where the underlying phenomena are hardest to visualise.

A template for evidence-led adoption

The Louisville deployment offers a template for how a medical school can adopt immersive learning responsibly: run a focused lesson, evaluate student perception, usability and outcomes, publish the findings, and expand from an evidence base. For institutions that rightly demand proof before scaling, that measured, research-led path is the model.

About iXRLabs

iXRLabs is an AI-powered VR and XR lab platform for higher education, delivering immersive, hands-on lab modules across Engineering, Medical, Sciences and Nursing. The platform helps universities and colleges teach systems and equipment that are hard, expensive or unsafe to access in reality, with browser-based WebXR delivery, LMS integration, the 7thi AI tutor and built-in assessment - so immersive learning can reach a whole cohort, not just a single lab.