Thematic Session 12

THEMATIC SESSION #12

Emanuele Tauro

Department of Cardiology, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Italy

• emanuele.tauro@polimi.it

Enrico Gianluca Caiani

Department of Electronics, Information and Bioengineering, Politecnico di Milano, Italy

The integration of Virtual and eXtended Reality (VR/XR) technologies in biomedicine has enabled the development of controlled and reproducible environments, opening new possibilities for research in psychological and emotional assessment. These technologies offer immersive settings that facilitate precise manipulation of stimuli, real-time adaptation to user responses, and the creation of safe environments for exposure-based assessments, enhancing the accuracy and depth of psychological evaluations.

This thematic session aims to explore novel methodologies and approaches for mental health assessment through VR/XR applications. Topics will include emotion recognition (real-time and post- analysis), physical and psychological response to simulated stimuli, and cognitive behavioral analysis.

Discussions will focus on current challenges and limitations, emerging opportunities, and future directions for translating VR/XR innovations into practical clinical tools, with a focus on personalized assessment protocols, remote evaluations, and tailored interventions. The session aims to bring together engineers, psychologists and clinicians to foster interdisciplinary collaboration and advance the field of VR/XR-based psychological assessment.

The list of topics includes (but is not limited to) the following:

• Emotion Recognition in Immersive VR/XR Environments.
• Measuring Physiological Responses to Virtual Stimuli.
• Cognitive and Behavioral Assessments Using XR Technologies.
• Personalized Mental Health Interventions in VR/XR.
• Development of Virtual Environments.
• Remote Psychological Assessments through VR/XR Platforms.
• Presentation of Adaptive Stimuli in Immersive Settings.
• Real-Time and Post-Analysis of Emotional Responses in VR/XR.
• Ethical Considerations in VR/XR-Based Mental Health Evaluations.
• Exposure Therapy through VR/XR.
• AI-Driven Customization for Psychological Assessments in VR/XR.
• Multimodal Data Integration in VR/XR Settings.
• VR/XR Tools for Stress and Anxiety Reduction.
• Enhancing Diagnostic Precision with Immersive Technologies.
• User Trust and Usability in VR/XR Mental Health Solutions.

Emanuele Tauro is a research fellow at the Department of Electronics, Information and Bioengineering (DEIB) of Politecnico di Milano, and a researcher at IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Ospedale San Luca. He received his Master's Degree in Biomedical Engineering in 2020, and PhD in Bioengineering in 2024 at Politecnico di Milano (Milano, Italy).
His research activities involve: the development of novel quantitative methods for the creation, validation and implementation of Personas for Persuasive System Design applications; full-stack development of tailored digital health solutions to monitor medication adherence in chronic patients; and development of Virtual Reality solutions for physical and psychological health.
In addition to his research, he is involved as teaching assistant for the graduate Biomedical Engineering course of eHealth Methods and Applications at Politecnico di Milano.

Enrico G. Caiani (MS in Electronic Eng. 1996, PhD in Biomedical Eng. 2000) is Associate professor at the Electronics, Information and Bioengineering Dpt., Politecnico di Milano, Italy since 2014. He is author of 7 book chapters, >150 papers (H-index=37, total citations>12000) and >150 conference proceeding papers. Since 2022, he is officially affiliated also with IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Ospedale San Luca, with whom he collaborates in the context of several projects.
Since 2020 he is Fellow of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC), where he served as Chair of the e-Cardiology Working Group (16-18) and is now serving as advisor of the Regulatory Affairs Committee on Medical Devices, and as ESC representative in the EU eHealth Stakeholders Group and in the EU Medical Device Coordination Group-New technologies.
In Oct 2020 he was nominated by the Italian Space Agency (ASI) as National Expert in the Thematic Table on Integrated Physiology, and since 2024 he is member of the European Space Agency Expert Group on Head Down Bed Rest. In May 2023, he has been nominated as expert in the Technical Scientific Committee serving the Inter-Parlamentary Group on “Digital Health and Digital Therapies”.
Since 2019, he is member of the Board of the PhD in Data Analytics and Decision Science at Politecnico di Milano, and actually he is acting as advisor of 7 PhD students. Also, he is the responsible of the D-Hygea Lab @ Politecnico (Digital solutions for prevention) - https://d-hygealab.deib.polimi.it/
His main research interests include digital health solutions in the field of cardiology, virtual reality for health, health geomatics, cardiac signal and image processing, space physiology, and regulatory science.