Meta-analysis of VR for pain in pediatric ED patients shows mixed results

This meta-analysis examined the use of virtual reality technology as an intervention for pediatric patients in emergency departments. The analysis included a total sample size of 629 participants comparing a virtual reality group with a control group. The primary outcome assessed was pain scores, while secondary outcomes included fear scores and first-attempt success rate.

The results indicated that the virtual reality technology group showed significantly better outcomes regarding pain scores compared with the control group. The effect size for pain scores was a standardized mean difference of -0.73 with a 95% confidence interval ranging from -1.42 to -0.04. The p-value for this finding was 0.04. In contrast, no significant differences were observed between the two groups for fear scores. The effect size for fear scores was -0.94 with a 95% confidence interval from -2.13 to 0.26 and a p-value of 0.12.

Similarly, no significant differences were observed between the groups for first-attempt success rate. The odds ratio was 1.01 with a 95% confidence interval of 0.60 to 1.72 and a p-value of 0.96. Safety data, including adverse events, serious adverse events, discontinuations, and tolerability, were not reported in the source. The authors did not list specific limitations or funding conflicts. Practice relevance regarding causality or certainty was not explicitly detailed in the provided text.