Author: Aigerim Akhmetova
Editor: Anastasia Merentsova
Medical procedures,such as medical examinations or injections, can cause pain in children. In such situations, children are usually distracted with toys or games to minimize stress and fear of pain. One form of distraction that can be used is virtual reality. Virtual reality is an artificial environment with scenes and objects that appear real (for example, a frozen world or a wildlife Park).
The study included 1,008 participants between the ages of 4 and 18 who underwent various procedures in medical institutions. Studies have compared virtual reality with no distraction or with non-virtual distraction (toys).
Based on the 17 studies included in this review, the authors concluded that there is evidence with low or very low confidence regarding the use of distracting virtual reality interventions in children with acute pain undergoing clinical procedures. More large-scale, high-quality research is needed to confirm the effectiveness and side effects of distractions on children with acute pain in any medical setting.
Source: https://www.cochranelibrary.com/cdsr/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD010686.pub2/full
