Virtual reality for management of cancer pain: Study rationale and design.

Background: Patients with cancer commonly experience acute and/or chronic moderate to severe pain related to disease, treatment, or both. While pain management strategies typically focus on drug therapies, non-pharmacological interventions may prove beneficial without risk of significant clinical side effects or contraindications. One novel strategy, virtual reality, has been shown to improve pain control in addition to usual pharmacological interventions.

Virtual reality for pain management in advanced heart failure: A randomized controlled study.

Background: Hospitalized patients with advanced heart failure often experience acute and/or chronic pain. While virtual reality has been extensively studied across a wide range of clinical settings, no studies have yet evaluated potential impact on pain management on this patient population.

Aim: To investigate the impact of a virtual reality experience on self-reported pain, quality-of-life, general distress, and satisfaction compared to a two-dimensional guided imagery active control.