The effects of virtual reality on patients undergoing urological procedures: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Purpose: The effects and safe profile of VR in urological procedures are examined in this review. Materials and methods: This systematic review conducted a literature search across PubMed, ScienceDirect, Cochrane Library, and Scopus in September 2024 using relevant keywords to identify studies assessing VR effects on patients undergoing urological procedures. Study quality was assessed using the Revised Cochrane’s risk of bias (RoB 2.0), and meta-analyses were conducted using Review Manager (RevMan) 5.4. The Protocol was registered in PROSPERO (CRD42024623102). Results: Six studies comprising 830 participants (398 intervention group and 432 control group) met the eligibility criteria. Our analysis showed that VR significantly reduced pain (standardized mean difference [MD]: −0.49; P = 0.003), heart rate (MD: −6.21; P < 0.00001), and systolic blood pressure (MD: −11.49; P < 0.00001) in patients undergoing urological procedures. Procedure duration was not significantly affected (MD: −0.84; P = 0.77). Adverse events were minimal across all studies. Conclusion: Our study showed that VR resulted in a statistically significant reduction in pain, heart rate, and systolic blood pressure among patients undergoing urological procedures with a safe profile. Further research is necessary to explore VR applications across a broader range of urological procedures.