Effect of Virtual Reality on Pain Intensity Associated with Arteriovenous Fistula Puncture among Children Undergoing Hemodialysis

Background: Arteriovenous Fistula (AVF) puncture is a crucial component of Hemodialysis (HD) thatis often accompanied by significant pain, particularly among pediatric patients. Mitigating this painusing promising adjunctive non-pharmacological therapy such as Virtual Reality (VR) is pivotal. Thestudy aimed to determine the effect of VR on pain intensity associated with AVF puncture amongchildren undergoing HD. Settings: The study was conducted at the HD units of Smouha Children'sUniversity Hospital and Sporting Students' Hospital in Alexandria, Egypt. Subjects: A convenientsample of 30 children undergoing HD through AVF comprised the study subjects. Children's agesranged from 6 to 12 years. All subjects were assigned to the control and then to the VR group crossoverly. Tools: Three tools were used to collect the necessary data namely, Characteristics of Childrenand their Medical and Physiological Data Assessment Sheet, Modified Children’s Hospital of EasternOntario Pain Scale, and Wong-Baker Faces Pain Rating Scale. Results: it was found that 76.7% ofchildren in the control group were suffering from severe pain during AVF puncture compared to 33.3%of children in the VR group. Also, most children in the VR group experienced mild pain (93.3%)immediately after the AVF puncture, compared to one-third of the control group (33.3%) as 60.0%experienced moderate pain. Conclusion: It was concluded that the VR technique minimized painresponses significantly during and immediately after AVF puncture among children undergoing HD.Recommendation: Virtual reality should be incorporated into the HD units' care protocols to alleviatechildren's pain.