Effect of Distraction Intervention for Needle-Related Pain and Distress in Children: A Systematic Review and

Mi-Kyoung Cho1, Mi-Young Choi1

  • 1Department of Nursing Science, Chungbuk National University, Cheongju 28644, Korea.

Insights

Distraction interventions effectively reduce needle-related pain and distress in children. This systematic review provides evidence for developing better nursing strategies to manage procedural pain in pediatric patients.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Nursing
  • Pain Management
  • Evidence-Based Practice

Background:

  • Needle-related procedures are a common source of pain and distress for children.
  • Effective nursing interventions are needed to manage pediatric procedural pain.
  • Distraction techniques show promise in alleviating needle-related pain.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To systematically review and meta-analyze the effectiveness of distraction interventions for needle-related pain in children.
  • To provide a basis for developing effective nursing interventions for pediatric pain management.
  • To identify strategies for improving outcomes in children experiencing needle-related pain.

Main Methods:

  • Systematic review and meta-analysis of studies published between January 2011 and December 2019.
  • Searched PubMed, Embase, and CINAHL databases, supplemented by manual reference searches.
  • Utilized MIX 2.0 Pro for synthesis of effect size, homogeneity, heterogeneity, and trim-and-fill analysis.

Main Results:

  • Distraction interventions were found to be effective in managing needle-related pain and distress in children.
  • Well-designed randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and high-quality studies demonstrated significant effects.
  • Visual and clown-based distraction interventions were particularly effective for participants over 10 years of age.

Conclusions:

  • Evidence supports the efficacy of distraction interventions for reducing children's needle-related pain and distress.
  • Identified strategies can inform the design of improved nursing interventions for pediatric procedural pain.
  • Further research can optimize distraction techniques for better patient outcomes.