Virtual Reality for Burn Wound Care Pain Control

Weill Cornell Medicine (WCM)

Status: Unknown

Conditions: Anxiety; Pain

Treatments: Other: Virtual Reality

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT00663013

0701008961

Details and patient eligibility

About

The investigators propose to study the effects of virtual reality (VR) on patients' pain perception during burn wound care. Such variables include psychiatric diagnosis and standard pain coping (i.e. pain catastophizer vs. non-pain catastrophizer).Aims: The investigators intend to evaluate the use of virtual reality in pain distraction for burn patients undergoing burn wound care. To that end our aims are: 1) To determine if pain perception will be less during the portion of the procedure in which the patient is immersed in the VR session in comparison to the portion of wound care which will occur without VR immersion. 2) To determine if anticipatory anxiety will be less for the portion of wound care that includes the virtual reality in comparison to the portion without virtual reality. 3) To determine if current psychiatric diagnosis, especially acute stress disorder and depression, is related to higher pain perception and greater decrease in pain with the virtual reality distraction. 4) To determine if being a "pain catastrophizer" is related to higher pain perception and greater benefits from the

Enrollment: 12 estimated patients

Sex: All

Ages: 12+ years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Age 12-100years
• Minimum burn wound size of 2% total body surface area (TBSA) excluding head and dominant hand
• Be able to sit upright independently in bed
• Minimum pain rating of 4/10 on a Visual Analog Scale (only using the most painful extremity).
• Able to consent to the study

Exclusion criteria

• Known history of motion sickness
• Seizures
• Migraines
• Current psychosis, dementia, or delirium
• Current blindness and/or deafness that significantly affects their ability to experience the VR

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Crossover Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

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12 participants in 2 patient groups

1

Active Comparator group

Description:

The first treatment session will involve 5-7 minutes of burn wound care while distracted by VR, and 5-7 minutes of burn wound care without the distraction of VR. The second session of burn wound care (performed within the next 3 days) will involve 5-7 minutes of burn wound care without the distraction of VR, and 5-7 minutes of burn wound care with the distraction of VR. The treatment order will be randomized.

Treatment:

Other: Virtual Reality

2

Active Comparator group

Description:

The first treatment session will involve 5-7 minutes of burn wound care while distracted by VR, and 5-7 minutes of burn wound care without the distraction of VR. The second session of burn wound care (performed within the next 3 days) will involve 5-7 minutes of burn wound care without the distraction of VR, and 5-7 minutes of burn wound care with the distraction of VR. The treatment order will be randomized.

Treatment:

Other: Virtual Reality