Getting children to go through a needle-based immunization can be incredibly frustrating to parents and very scary for the kids. Cheap virtual reality headsets are becoming just the thing to overcome this seemingly perpetual problem and researchers at Florida Atlantic University were looking to prove this out.
The group invited a group of kids and their parents to participate in the study. Questions from the Wong–Baker pain scale and McMurtry children’s fear scale were asked before and after a regular immunization. Remarkably, almost all of the patients that wore a virtual reality headset, within which they experienced roller coasters or hot air balloon rides, had a much lower fear and pain compared to what they were expecting to feel. Moreover, nearly every child wanted to use the virtual reality option next time they would have to return to the clinic.
Study in journal Pain Management: Effect of virtual reality headset for pediatric fear and pain distraction during immunization…
Kids Want Virtual Reality to Help Get Through Immunizations [Medgadget]