VROOM-Virtual Reality therapy to improve arthroplasty outcomes
Research type
Research Study
Full title
VROOM-Virtual Reality immersive therapy to improve joint arthroplasty patient reported outcomes- a pilot/feasibility randomised controlled trial.
IRAS ID
339185
Contact name
Devjit Srivastava
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
NHS Highland Research ,Development and Innovation Division
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 5 months, 1 days
Research summary
VROOM Pilot study
Psychological factors play an important part in outcomes after surgery. Poor psychological preparations can result in poor outcomes after surgery. One of the main psychological factors that has a considerable impact on surgical outcomes is anxiety. Too much anxiety can cause a stress response within the human body and increase the perception of pain.
Current methods of managing anxiety prior to surgery include medications, talking therapies, educational videos and nurse /doctor contact for preparation for surgery and information leaflets. While some of the above methods have been used in pathways for surgical patients, there is still a substantial need to manage anxiety better prior to and after surgery .
Virtual reality (VR) has recently emerged as a non-medication-based method to manage anxiety. The patient wears a VR headset and is offered an immersive environment with hypnotic components with sound and imagery in a 3 D environment. VR creates an immersive 3D environment and diverts attention away from worrying thoughts (anxiety) and pain and has been found useful to manage minor procedural pain and related anxiety.
Currently there are no large-scale study that outlines the usefulness of VR to improve anxiety, pain and surgical outcomes after surgery especially joint replacement surgery.We therefore have planned a pilot feasibility trial to evaluate the effectiveness of VR in improving patient related outcomes (PROM) after joint replacement surgery. The PROM outcomes will cover immediate recovery after surgery (24 hours), intermediate recovery outcomes (30 days) and late recovery outcomes (3 months). The measured outcomes will include pain and anxiety related outcomes, patient reported surgical complications rate (PROM), healthcare utilisation and hard outcomes such as measured blood levels of inflammatory markers and hormones.
This pilot feasibility trial intends to evaluate the feasibility of carrying out a larger multi-centre trial in the future.REC name
South Central - Hampshire B Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
25/SC/0132
Date of REC Opinion
10 Jul 2025
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion