Virtual reality exposure reduce acute postoperative pain in female patients undergoing laparoscopic gynecology surgery: A Randomized Control Trial (RCT) study

Few studies have focused on the effect of virtual reality (VR) exposure on postoperative acute pain in adult female patients undergoing gynecology surgery. A randomized control trial (RCT) study. At Beijing Fuxing Hospital. 115 patients aged between 20 and 60 years, American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) physical status I - II were consecutively enrolled and randomly divided into VR group (n = 58) or control group (n = 57). Patients in the VR group received 15 min of VR video viewing before surgery. The primary outcome was acute postoperative pain at 8 h which was measured by the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) scores. The secondary outcomes including the use of analgesic drugs, the incidence of moderate pain and postoperative recovery which were recorded 24 h after surgery. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) was also used to evaluate patients' emotional status before surgery. The VAS scores at 30 min [2 (1,2) vs. 3 (2,3)], 2 h [2 (2,3) vs. 4 (3,4)], 4 h [3 (2,4) vs. 4 (4,5)], 8 h [3 (2,4) vs. 4 (4,5)], 12 h [2 (2,3) vs. 4 (3,4)], 24 h [1 (1,2) vs. 3 (2,3)] after surgery. Generalized estimation equation (GEE) indicated that VR intervention was negatively correlated with postoperative VAS values (β = −0.830, S.E = 0.199, 95%CI (−1.220,-0.439), Wald χ2 = 17.359, p 4) at 8 h postoperatively (12.1% vs 31.0%, p = 0.013). However, the 24 h tramadol usage remained unchanged. Patients in the VR group had better sleep quality (6.33 ± 2.3 vs. 4.12 ± 2.5, p