Virtual Reality as an Adjunctive Non-pharmacological Therapy to Reduce Pain in School-Aged Children With Burn Wounds

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Pain Management
• Burn Care
• Virtual Reality Applications

Background:

• Burn wound care in children is often associated with significant pain and distress.
• Effective pain management strategies are crucial for improving patient outcomes and reducing psychological impact.
• Virtual reality (VR) has emerged as a potential non-pharmacological intervention for pain relief.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of virtual reality (VR) in mitigating pain experienced by school-aged children during burn wound dressing changes.
• To assess the impact of VR on physiological pain indicators such as heart rate and blood oxygen saturation.
• To determine the occurrence of adverse reactions like dizziness and nausea associated with VR use in this pediatric population.

Main Methods:

• A before-and-after study design was employed with 34 pediatric burn patients.
• Patients underwent two randomly assigned wound dressing changes: one with VR (using a headset and gamepad for distraction) and one without (Non-VR).
• Pain scores (Wong-Baker, FLACC), heart rate, blood oxygen saturation, and adverse events were recorded at multiple time points relative to the procedure.

Main Results:

• VR group showed significantly lower Wong-Baker and FLACC pain scores during and after wound dressing changes compared to the Non-VR group.
• Pain scores in the VR group decreased from 5.79 (Wong-Baker) and 4.91 (FLACC) before the procedure to 2.44 and 2.12, respectively, after.
• No significant adverse reactions such as dizziness or nausea were reported in the VR group.

Conclusions:

• Virtual reality is an effective intervention for reducing pain in school-aged children undergoing burn wound care.
• VR provides a safe, non-pharmacological approach to pain management in pediatric burn patients.
• The use of VR in burn care does not appear to induce adverse side effects in children.