"Virtual Reality: Opportunities for the NIH"Tuesday, February 24, 2004

What:Virtual reality technologies are proving to be an important new tool in medical science. The National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institutes of Health, is hosting Virtual Reality: Opportunities for the NIH to highlight the latest scientific findings on the current and potential roles for virtual reality technologies in medicine.

This one-day symposium will feature presentations by multidisciplinary experts who will describe the theory and applications of virtual reality (computer-generated stimulus environments), emphasizing how this technology is being used in prevention and treatment therapies for drug abuse, post-traumatic stress disorder, eating disorders, phobias, and pain.   When:Tuesday, February 24, 2004 8:30 a.m.4:30 p.m.   Where:Lister Hill Auditorium National Library of Medicine Building 38A, National Institutes of Health (Medical Center stop on the Metros Red line)   Who:Featured Speakers Listed on the Agenda that follows. NOTE: Each presentation will be followed by a brief question and discussion session.   Info:The media are encouraged to attend. For more information, please call the NIDA Press Office at 301-443-6245.   Agenda:http://www.drugabuse.gov/Newsroom/04/NR2-19.html#agenda

The National Institute on Drug Abuse is a component of the National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIDA supports more than 85 percent of the worlds research on the health aspects of drug abuse and addiction. The Institute carries out a large variety of programs to ensure the rapid dissemination of research information and its implementation in policy and practice. Fact sheets on the health effects of drugs of abuse and information on NIDA research and other activities can be found on the NIDA home page at http://www.drugabuse.gov.