[Virtual reality exposure therapy for treating addictions and craving].

Heroin addiction causes damage to physical and psychological health and can have serious social consequences. For people with addictive disorders, maintaining abstinence is a major difficulty. The stimuli that trigger cravings and urges are present in everyday life. For example, the presence of the substance, its smell, a stressful situation or a negative or positive emotion can trigger a strong urge for substance use. Craving can contribute to relapse episodes. Virtual reality exposure therapy (VET) may train people to cope differently when facing such triggers. This article presents a synthesis of the literature and the clinical steps involved in VET.