Distraction using virtual reality for children during intravenous injections in an emergency department: A randomised trial

Abstract

Aim and objectivesTo determine whether the virtual reality as a distracting intervention could reduce pain and fear in school‐age children receiving intravenous injections at an emergency department.BackgroundAn intravenous injection is the most common invasive procedure that paediatric patients encounter in emergency department. School‐age children seldom show their fear or discomfort during the procedure which may be ignored.DesignA randomised controlled trial was conducted from December 2017–May 2018 and performed according to the CONSORT guidelines.MethodsOne hundred and thirty‐six children aged 7–12 years were randomly allocated to receive either a routine intravenous injection procedure or one with an immersive virtual reality experience. Children were asked to rate their pain and fear along with their caregivers and nurses on the Wong–Baker FACES Pain Rating Scale and Children's Fear Scale, respectively. The time required for successful intravenous insertion was also assessed in the emergency department. Clinical trial registration was done (ClinicalTrials.gov.: NCT04081935).ResultsPain and fear scores were significantly lower in the virtual reality group, as were the children's ratings as perceived by their caregivers and nurses. The children's ratings of pain and fear were positively correlated with the caregivers’ ratings and the nurses' ratings as well. The time required for successful intravenous insertion was significantly lower in the virtual reality group.ConclusionVisual reality intervention can effectively reduce the pain and fear during intravenous procedure in school‐age children in emergency department.Relevance to clinical practiceThe results of this study indicate the feasible clinical value of virtual reality interventions during the administration of intravenous injections in school‐age children in emergency departments.

Distraction in the Emergency department using Virtual reality for INtravenous procedures in Children to Improve comfort (DEVINCI): a pilot pragmatic randomized controlled trial

“…Immersive virtual reality has been documented in different settings and showed very promising results [14,[24][25][26], including a study in the ED involving IV procedures in children [27]. A recent systematic review summarized the clinical effects of virtual reality in different pediatric applications, with numerous reports of reduced procedural pain and distress [28].…”

Effects of Virtual Reality-Based Distraction of Pain, Fear, and Anxiety During Needle-Related Procedures in Children and Adolescents

“…The 10 studies included 571 children in the VR group and 575 in the control group. Six studies (seven datasets) were from Turkey (Aydin and Ozyazicioglu, 2019 ; Inangil et al, 2020 ; Koc Ozkan and Polat, 2020 ; Ozalp Gerceker et al, 2020 ; Gerceker et al, 2021 ; Semerci et al, 2021 ), one (two datasets) from Australia (Chan et al, 2019 ), one from Taiwan (Chen et al, 2020 ), and two from the United States of America (Gold et al, 2006 ; Gold and Mahrer, 2018 ). All participants were children or adolescents.…”

Development and Feasibility Test of a Mouth Contactless Breathing Exercise Solution Using Virtual Reality: A Randomized Crossover Trial

“…In the field of nursing, VR has been mainly used in nursing education and training [33]. The use of VR in nursing clinical practice such as pain and anxiety management [34] and sleep improvement [28] has been gradually increasing. The application areas of VR are expected to expand further by the combining of big data, wearable sensors, and artificial intelligence technology [35].…”