Pain management in children during invasive procedures: A randomized clinical trial

Aims: This study was performed to determine the effect of distraction technique that was applied to 4-6-year-old children during blood drawal for decreasing the pain of the child during the procedure. Material and Methods: The study was carried out as randomized controlled trial. Data were collected by individual information form, Faces Pain Scale-Revised (FPS-R), and a timer. Virtual reality glasses were used for distraction in the study. Results: Pain intensity and duration of crying significantly differed between the control and experimental groups. During the procedure, mean score of the children in the experimental group from "faces pain scale" was found to be 3.82 +/- 1.20; the control group from "faces pain scale" was found to be 6.96 +/- 2.08; and statistically significant differences were detected between both groups (p = 0.0001 and p = 0.001, respectively). When their duration of crying was examined, it was determined that mean crying time among the children in the experimental group was 8.43 +/- 12.42 s and it was 33.65 +/- 24.02 s among the children in control group; and the difference between groups was found to be statistically significant. Conclusion: It was detected that using virtual reality glasses was an effective method in decreasing pain of the children during blood drawal procedure.