AIM  To find solutions to certain operational risks and difficulty of simulating on the ground in practice courses and provide students with real aerospace special environment and improve the efficiency and participation of students in practical teaching of aerospace medicine.

  METHODS  VR and online courseware of “The Mechanism of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy for Altitude Decompression Sickness” was constructed and 29 students were divided into conventional theory + hyperbaric oxygen chamber trainee group and VR + online case group according to their student ID numbers. Students in conventional theory + hyperbaric oxygen Chamber trainee group were taught by the traditional way: after the lecture of the basic knowledge of hyperbaric oxygen, the students went to the hyperbaric oxygen chamber for internship to understand the mechanism of hyperbaric oxygen treatment for altitude decompression sickness and in-class test was completed before the end of class. Students in VR+ online case group adopted the course practice teaching mode of “virtual and real combination”. Students completed the online case and used VR to learn the mechanism of hyperbaric oxygen therapy for altitude decompression sickness in the XR immersive teaching library. We used CAVE screen to present the process of blood bubbles in forming gas emboli to block blood vessels and reacting with blood components during the occurrence of altitude decompression sickness and the test was completed online.

  RESULTS  The score rates of 9 knowledge points in 15 test knowledge points of students in VR+ online group were significantly higher than those of students in conventional theory + hyperbaric oxygen chamber trainee group. Meanwhile, the mean score for tests in VR+ online group was significantly higher than that in conventional theory + hyperbaric oxygen chamber trainee group (P<0.05).

  CONCLUSION  The combination of virtual reality technology (VR) and online case teaching has the characteristics of strong interaction, good visualization and high interest in the practical teaching of aerospace medicine, which can effectively solve the problem of simulating decompression sickness and avoid the danger in operating hyperbaric oxygen chamber in traditional aerospace medicine practice teaching.