Virtual Reality Enhances Ob/Gyn Patients' Comfort

Medscape

19-05-2025

MINNEAPOLIS — Virtual reality (VR) was associated with significant reduction in pain and anxiety in Ob/Gyn settings, according to a systematic review presented at the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) 2025 Annual Meeting.
'Women's pain has historically been under-recognized and undertreated in clinical settings, including in obstetrics and gynecology,' said lead and presenting author Surina Khurana, a medical student at the University of California, Irvine, in an interview.
'With VR emerging as a promising tool for pain and anxiety management in other fields, we saw an important opportunity to explore its potential in Ob/Gyn care,' she said. 'As VR technology becomes more accessible, understanding how it can be integrated into routine practice is critical,' Khurana added.
Khurana and colleagues identified 34 studies published between 2013 and 2024 on the use of VR to alleviate pain and anxiety in Ob/Gyn. Approximately one third (35%) of the studies involved the use of VR in labor; the second most common use was hysteroscopy (18%).
Overall, 78% of studies in which pain was an outcome measure showed significant reductions in pain among patients who experienced VR compared with control groups. Similarly, 71% of studies in which anxiety was an outcome measure showed significant reductions in anxiety with VR vs control groups.
'One of the striking findings was the rapid growth in research on this topic in recent years,' Khurana told Medscape Medical News . 'Although our review covered studies published between 2013 and 2024, nearly all the studies were published in 2020 or later,' she said. The sharp uptick highlights the growing interest in using VR as a non-pharmacologic tool for pain and anxiety management, potentially spurred by early success in other specialties, as well as an increasing focus on patient experience, said Khurana. The increase also 'reflects a momentum in the field that we hope continues,' she said.
Most of the VR experiences used in the studies were designed to calm and distract patients, such as immersive nature scenes or relaxing environments, and were delivered via headsets, said Khurana. 'These tools aim to redirect attention away from the procedure and toward a more soothing sensory experience,' she said.
Barriers to widespread implementation of VR in Ob/Gyn include not only the upfront cost of the devices and the need for internet access to download or stream content but also the logistical challenges of incorporating VR into fast-paced clinical workflows, Khurana told Medscape Medical News . 'Overcoming these hurdles will require institutional support, provider training, and clear protocols for integrating VR into patient care,' she said.
Limitations and Future Directions
'As a systematic review, one of the primary limitations is the heterogeneity among included studies, which limited our ability to perform a meta-analysis,' said Khurana. However, the review offers valuable insight on the current landscape of VR in Ob/Gyn care, along with trends and research gaps, she said.
'Further research is needed to better assess the effectiveness of VR in the most common office-based procedural settings, such as intrauterine device (IUD) insertions or colposcopies,' said Khurana. 'Additional studies focusing on the pediatric and adolescent gynecology population would also be beneficial, as this group may have unique needs and could particularly benefit from supportive pain management strategies,' she noted.
Expanding the View on VR
A greater understanding of complementary and alternative pain management options in Ob/Gyn settings remains a critical, unmet need, said Melissa S. Wong, MD, assistant professor in the Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, in an interview.
'We are beginning to see a real call from patients for better pain management, and finding safe, effective options that can be administered in a clinic or inpatient setting will broaden the tools available to us as clinicians to improve our patients' experience,' said Wong, who was not involved in the study but has published research on the use of VR for women in labor as a pain reduction strategy.
'I was surprised that more studies had not been performed in this space, as virtual reality has been repeatedly demonstrated to be effective in reducing pain and anxiety in other procedural settings,' Wong told Medscape Medical News . Many Ob/Gyn procedures are relatively brief and would be conducive to a quick on-and-off type of intervention such as what is possible with VR, she added. The takeaway from the current study is recognition of multiple settings in which VR has effectively reduced pain or anxiety for patients, she said.
Looking ahead, more research is needed to determine which patients may have the greatest benefit from VR, which procedures are most conducive, and even which kinds of VR experiences are most suited to Ob/Gyn settings, Wong said.