Decreasing REcurrent Pain and Anxiety in Medical Procedures With a Pediatric Population: Trial
Status:
Withdrawn
Trial end date:
2020-06-01
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
Children with burn injuries experience severe pain intensity during medical procedures
despite the increasing doses of analgesics. Current guidelines on pediatric procedural pain
management recommend the combination of non-pharmacological and pharmacological interventions
to enhance pain management and decrease the numerous side effects of analgesics. Virtual
reality (VR) has gained growing consideration as a non-pharmacological method as it engages
multiple senses and allows interactions with a virtual world. Oculus Rift ® is a new
technology in VR that provides more immersiveness, at a relatively low cost, and could
probably improve the management of pain and anxiety in burn care. It also has the potential,
with appropriate custom software designed for burn pediatric patients, to reduce the
cybersickness symptoms (nausea, dizziness) associated with VR. To the knowledge of the
investigators, none of the pediatric hospitals across Canada have tested VR as a method of
pain and anxiety management in children with burn injuries. Overall hypotheses: VR
distraction via Oculus Rift ® could be an effective method to relieve pain, and anxiety, as
well as a less traumatizing hospital experience, while promoting a more humanistic care
environment by combining new technologies (VR via Oculus Rift ®) to standard analgesic
interventions administered to these children. The expected results will have a direct effect
on physical (pain) and psychological (anxiety, pain memories) health of the child. In
addition, clinical implications may include other indicators of quality of care and economic
benefits such as a wider range of motion of burned limbs and reduction in dosage of opioids
and anxiolytic drugs administered.