Effects of Virtual Reality Interventions on the Parameters of Normal Labor: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials. A Meta-Analysis of Virtual Reality Interventions on the Parameters of Normal Labor

Background: Clinical and experimental studies on virtual reality have shown that this easy-to-use and non-invasive method is a safe and effective strategy during normal labor. Aim: This study aims to analyze the effects of virtual reality (VR) interventions on some of the parameters of normal labor. Design: Systematic review and meta-analysis. Method: Higher Education Council National Thesis Center, Scopus, PubMed, Google Scholar, and Science Direct databases were systematically searched for randomized controlled trials that administered VR to the intervention group but not to the control group and were published through January 2022. RevMan software was used to analyze the meta-analysis data. Pain, anxiety, satisfaction, and the duration of the first and second stages of labor were assessed as outcomes of normal labor. Results: Seven randomized controlled trials, with a total of 756 women in total, met the inclusion criteria. Virtual reality interventions significantly reduced pain scores when cervical dilatation was <= 4 cm (MD =-0.43, 95% expansion here (CI [-0.65,-0.21], p <.001) and >= 9 cm (SMD =-1.91, 95% CI [-2.56, - 1.26], p <.001). Anxiety scores significantly decreased (SMD = -1.08, 95% CI [-1.75, 0.41], p <.001), and childbirth satisfaction significantly increased (MD = 11.24, 95% CI [2.17, 20.30], p <.001) in the VR intervention groups. Finally, when compared to the control groups, the duration of the first stage of labor (SMD = -0.53, 95% CI [-0.83, -0.22], p <.01) and the second stage of labor (MD = -0.39, 95% CI [-0.76, -0.02], p =.001) were significantly decreased in the VR intervention groups. Conclusions: Virtual reality interventions are effective methods to reduce pain, anxiety, and the duration of the first and second stages of labor and to increase satisfaction with normal labor. (c) 2023 Published by Elsevier Inc. on behalf of American Society for Pain Management Nursing.