Feasibility of a virtual reality intervention in the intensive care unit.
Yameena T Jawed, Dmitriy Golovyan, David Lopez and 8 others
PMID 34217986WHAT IT FOUND
A 15-minute VR beach scene was feasible in 12 of 15 ICU patients, with minor dizziness or nausea and no major safety events.
It did not show that VR reduces delirium, pain, or anxiety.
Key findings
0112 of the 15 patients completed the 15-minute VR session, and 3 tolerated it for less than 5 minutes.
02Patients reported minimal side effects: 1 had nausea, 2 had dizziness, and 0 had headaches; no major safety events occurred.
0371% of patients felt their anxiety was better with VR, while 57% did not notice a change in pain or discomfort.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
Only 15 patients and 21 providers were studied, so the findings are preliminary. The study was non-randomized, so it cannot show that VR caused the reported changes. The primary outcome was feasibility, not effectiveness for delirium, pain, or anxiety. The survey was designed for this study, and the paper notes a lack of standardized scales for patient experience in the VR environment. Screening and enrollment data were not captured, so it is unclear how many patients were approached or excluded. The delirium subgroup was very small: of 3 patients, 2 had delirium and remained delirious after the intervention. The paper notes lower enrollment of mechanically ventilated patients as a limitation, although 40% of patients were receiving mechanical ventilation.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the 71% anxiety improvement as evidence that VR treats ICU delirium, pain, or anxiety. This was a small non-randomized pilot of 15 patients whose primary outcome was feasibility, not treatment effect.