Postoperative Implementation of Virtual Reality and Wearable Devices: Opportunities and Challenges.

Area of Science:

• Surgical recovery and patient monitoring technologies.
• Digital health interventions in post-operative care.

Background:

• Postoperative recovery often involves significant pain management and mobility challenges.
• Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) protocols aim to optimize patient outcomes.
• Virtual reality (VR) and wearable activity devices offer potential for enhanced recovery.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the implementation and effectiveness of VR and Fitbit devices in the postoperative recovery of head and neck surgery patients.
• To assess the impact of these technologies on opioid consumption and patient satisfaction.

Main Methods:

• A prospective, 4-arm randomized controlled trial involving 80 patients undergoing inpatient head and neck surgery.
• Patients were assigned to Control, VR, Fitbit, or combined VR + Fitbit groups.
• Primary outcome was average daily opioid use (MME); secondary outcomes included device usage and patient satisfaction.

Main Results:

• The combined VR + Fitbit group showed significantly reduced average daily opioid use compared to the control group (8.8 vs. 26.4 MME, p=0.02).
• Patients in intervention groups reported higher hospital satisfaction.
• VR was used 26% of the time, with a mean daily use of 23.8 minutes; Fitbit groups achieved ≥2,000 steps 45% of the time.

Conclusions:

• Combined VR and wearable activity device implementation is well-tolerated in postoperative recovery.
• These technologies show promise for integration into ERAS protocols.
• Challenges remain in maximizing patient engagement and device utilization.