{"id":48089,"date":"2026-05-13T06:00:17","date_gmt":"2026-05-13T04:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/semmelweis.hu\/english\/?p=48089"},"modified":"2026-05-13T09:01:38","modified_gmt":"2026-05-13T07:01:38","slug":"preoperative-vr-exposure-studied-in-surgical-care-at-semmelweis-universitys-pediatric-center","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/semmelweis.hu\/english\/2026\/05\/preoperative-vr-exposure-studied-in-surgical-care-at-semmelweis-universitys-pediatric-center\/","title":{"rendered":"Preoperative VR exposure studied in surgical care at Semmelweis University\u2019s Pediatric Center"},"content":{"rendered":"
Using virtual reality (VR) before surgery was associated with reduced pain in the early postoperative period among adolescents, according to new research from Semmelweis University. However, the study<\/a>, published in the Journal of Pediatric Surgery<\/em>, found that VR did not reduce preoperative anxiety, though it may help ease postoperative discomfort.\u00a0<\/div>\n
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During surgery for funnel chest, one or more curved metal bars are inserted under the sternum through small incisions on both sides of the chest, then rotated to lift the sunken chest. Because of the constant pressure on the chest wall, the postoperative period is often quite painful.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

The randomized controlled trial, carried out at the university\u2019s Pediatric Center, included 50 patients aged 13 to 18 who were scheduled to undergo surgery for funnel chest (pectus excavatum), a chest wall deformity. Half of the participants were randomly assigned to use a VR headset for one hour before surgery, while the other half received standard preoperative care.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In the VR group, male patients tended to choose action and adventure videos and games, while female participants mostly selected meditation and relaxation apps.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\u201cWe wanted to assess whether VR could reduce preoperative anxiety, which can later lead to problems in children such as nightmares, bedwetting, or separation anxiety,\u201d said Dr Sarolta H. Trinh, a PhD candidate at the Pediatric Center of Semmelweis University and first author of the study.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The results showed that VR did not significantly reduce anxiety. Anxiety levels increased in both groups from admission to the operating room, with no meaningful difference between them. According to the researchers, this may be due to all patients routinely receiving a sedative before surgery, which could have masked the additional effect of VR.\u00a0<\/p>\n

At the same time, a temporary difference was seen in postoperative pain. In the first hour after surgery, patients in the VR group reported lower pain scores on a 0\u201310 scale (median 5 vs. 7.5). However, this difference did not persist at later time points. The researchers stress that the study was primarily designed to assess anxiety, so this finding should be interpreted with caution.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\u201cThe difference in postoperative pain was surprising, but it was only seen in the first hour and we did not observe a longer effect, so its clinical relevance is limited. Still, it suggests that the role of VR in surgical care is worth exploring further,\u201d said Dr \u00c1gnes Jermendy, assistant professor at the Pediatric Center of Semmelweis University and shared last author of the study.\u00a0<\/p>\n

According to the researchers, VR works primarily by distraction. Its benefits are already well established in younger children for both pain relief and reducing anxiety, but further research is needed to determine its effectiveness in adolescents.<\/p>\n

This randomized controlled trial provides new data in an age group that has been underrepresented in the literature.
\nBased on the findings, VR could become a useful addition to pediatric and adolescent surgical care in the future.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\u201cIntegrating VR into perioperative care would not replace painkillers or proper anesthesia, but it could help improve the organization of surgical workflows and enhance the patients\u2019 experience. This may represent a promising direction for future research,\u201d added Dr Bal\u00e1zs Hauser, senior anesthesiologist at the university\u2019s Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Patient Care, head of the anesthesiology team involved in the study and shared last author.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Future research could also examine how VR can be used during recovery, for example in early rehabilitation or to reduce hospital-related stress. Further studies are needed to determine which patient groups could benefit most.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Photos: Bogl\u00e1rka Zellei, Attila Kov\u00e1cs – Semmelweis University\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

VR may reduce pain in the early postoperative period among adolescents.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":102533,"featured_media":48091,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[129,270,286],"tags":[261,29],"class_list":["post-48089","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health","category-other","category-x-nyitolap","tag-press","tag-research"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/semmelweis.hu\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48089","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/semmelweis.hu\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/semmelweis.hu\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/semmelweis.hu\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/102533"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/semmelweis.hu\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48089"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/semmelweis.hu\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48089\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":48100,"href":"https:\/\/semmelweis.hu\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48089\/revisions\/48100"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/semmelweis.hu\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/48091"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/semmelweis.hu\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48089"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/semmelweis.hu\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48089"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/semmelweis.hu\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48089"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}