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Pain management in children during invasive procedures: A randomized clinical trial
Fadime Ustuner Top1, Tülay Kuzlu Ayyıldız2
1Department of Pediatric Nursing, Faculty of Health Sciences, Giresun University, Giresun, Turkey.
Insights
Virtual reality distraction effectively reduced pain and crying in children during blood draws. This innovative technique significantly lowered pain scores and crying duration compared to standard procedures.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric healthcare
- Pain management techniques
- Medical procedure interventions
Background:
- Blood drawal procedures can cause significant pain and distress in children.
- Effective pain management strategies are crucial for improving pediatric patient experience.
- Distraction techniques offer a non-pharmacological approach to mitigate procedural pain.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the efficacy of virtual reality (VR) as a distraction technique for pain reduction in 4-6-year-old children during blood drawal.
- To compare pain intensity and crying duration between children using VR distraction and a control group.
Main Methods:
- A randomized controlled trial design was employed.
- Data collection involved individual information forms, the Faces Pain Scale-Revised (FPS-R), and timers.
- Virtual reality glasses served as the distraction intervention.
Main Results:
- Children in the VR group reported significantly lower mean pain scores (3.82 ± 1.20) compared to the control group (6.96 ± 2.08) (p < 0.001).
- The duration of crying was significantly shorter in the VR group (8.43 ± 12.42 s) than in the control group (33.65 ± 24.02 s) (p < 0.001).
Conclusions:
- Virtual reality glasses are an effective method for decreasing pain in children during blood drawal.
- VR distraction can be a valuable tool for pediatric healthcare providers to manage procedural pain.
- Implementing VR technology can enhance patient comfort and reduce anxiety during venipuncture.
Aims:
This study was performed to determine the effect of distraction technique that was applied to 4-6-year-old children during blood drawal for decreasing the pain of the child during the procedure.
Material And Methods:
The study was carried out as randomized controlled trial. Data were collected by individual information form, Faces Pain Scale-Revised (FPS-R), and a timer. Virtual reality glasses were used for distraction in the study.
Results:
Pain intensity and duration of crying significantly differed between the control and experimental groups. During the procedure, mean score of the children in the experimental group from "faces pain scale" was found to be 3.82 ± 1.20; the control group from "faces pain scale" was found to be 6.96 ± 2.08; and statistically significant differences were detected between both groups (p = 0.0001 and p = 0.001, respectively). When their duration of crying was examined, it was determined that mean crying time among the children in the experimental group was 8.43 ± 12.42 s and it was 33.65 ± 24.02 s among the children in control group; and the difference between groups was found to be statistically significant.
Conclusion:
It was detected that using virtual reality glasses was an effective method in decreasing pain of the children during blood drawal procedure.
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