The pain associated with many injuries, such as burns, is considerable. As well as the actual physical damage, pain occurs with dressing changes. This is manifest as the actual pain and the anxiety bound up with anticipating the dressing change.
Measures to reduce pain include powerful drugs, like opioids and these can carry serious adverse side effects. This has led researchers to consider alternative measures for addressing pain. One such area includes virtual reality.
It is reasoned that virtual reality can significantly lessen people’s pain signals, especially in those who experience more severe pain.
The focus of a recent research study is with smartphone-based virtual reality games, which can be played during dressing changes. The study looked at children in a pediatric ward for those with burn injuries. The study was run by the Center for Pediatric Trauma Research.
The initial study was a randomized clinical trial using 90 children (aged 6 to 17 years old). The children were allocated into one of three treatment groups name: Active virtual reality, passive virtual reality, and standard care (with no virtual reality).
The virtual reality game used was called ‘Virtual River Cruise’, and this was specially produced for the project. The game’s background was a cooling environment and to play the game required a high-level of cognitive processing.
The children allocated to play the game were issued with a smartphone and a headset. Play time was 5 to 6 minutes (the typical time for a dressing change). The active virtual reality group were asked to actively engage with the game. Those allocated to the passive virtual reality group simply watched the game.
Both caregivers and the children were asked to state the perceived pain levels, and the data across the three groups was reviewed.
The findings showed that those in the active virtual reality group recorded the lowest overall pain scores. This suggests that the game has the potential to be clinically useful in the outpatient setting.
Going forwards, in the U.S., the Ohio Department of Public Safety aims to evaluate the feasibility and efficacy of virtual reality games in reducing pain dressing changes.
The research has been published in the journal JAMA Network Open, with the study titled “Efficacy of Smartphone Active and Passive Virtual Reality Distraction vs Standard Care on Burn Pain Among Pediatric Patients.”
