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Postoperative VR for Recovery After Bariatric Surgery

Not Applicable
Recruiting
Conditions
Bariatric Surgery Candidate
Postoperative Pain
Postoperative Complications
Interventions
Other: Virtual Reality Immersive Relaxation
Registration Number
NCT04754165
Lead Sponsor
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Brief Summary

The objective of this study is to investigate whether the addition of immersive virtual reality (VR) in the immediate postoperative period to an enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) protocol could improve postoperative recovery from bariatric surgery.

Detailed Description

The investigators propose conducting a randomized, controlled, single-center clinical trial of patients recovering from laparoscopic bariatric surgery. The objective is to investigate whether the use of virtual reality (VR) during the immediate postoperative period could improve patient reported quality of recovery and potentially reduce opioid analgesic requirements as compared to an existing ERAS protocol.

The investigators hypothesize that immersive VR will improve subjective quality of recovery scores at time of Post Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU) discharge as compared to standard ERAS.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
RECRUITING
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
106
Inclusion Criteria
  • Patients undergoing laparoscopic bariatric surgery at BIDMC under general anesthesia.
Exclusion Criteria
  • Age<18
  • Open wounds or active infection of the face or eye area
  • History of seizures or other symptom linked to an epileptic condition
  • Patients with hearing aids who are unable to tolerate wearing headphones with their hearing aids
  • Patients with a pacemaker or other implanted medical device
  • Droplet or airborne precautions (as determined by BIDMC infection control policy)
  • Non English Speaking or non Spanish Speaking
  • Chronic opioid dependence (existing oral opioid prescription for >3 months, methadone, suboxone)

Drop Out Criteria: (after enrollment and randomization, before intervention)

  • Surgery is converted to an open procedure (laparotomy), the patient will be withdrawn from the study as these patients are treated in a manner that is different than standard ERAS protocols

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
PARALLEL
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
Immersive Virtual Reality plus the enhanced recovery after surgery protocolVirtual Reality Immersive RelaxationPatients in the immersive VR group will don a VR headset connected to a software platform on a tablet, as well as noise cancelling headphones in the post anesthesia care unit (PACU) after surgery. Patients can choose their desired experience within the VR software from a selection of immersive environments and/or video content. Examples include sitting in a canoe on a river, on a peaceful meadow or in a forest. Patients also have the option to listen to guided meditation or select from a library of videos to watch on a web-based user interface. Patients in the VR group will also be treated according to the existing enhanced recovery after surgery protocol.
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Quality of Recovery Questionnaires (QoR-15)Measured at time of post anesthesia care unit discharge, on average of 1 to 5 hours after surgery.

The primary outcome of this study will be patient reported quality of recovery at time of PACU discharge, as assessed by the QOR-15. The QOR-15 is a validated instrument to assess postoperative recovery from the patient's perspective, assessing overall well-being, nausea, pain, and anxiety and depression following surgery.

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Opioid-related adverse effectsMeasured throughout the patients stay at the hospital, on average 1 to 3 days.

Opioid-related adverse effects such as nausea or ileus.

PACU Opioid RequirementsMeasured throughout a patient's stay in the post anesthesia care unit, on average 1 to 5 hours after surgery.

The postoperative opioid requirements following the patients surgery, will be measured in milligrams and converted to morphine dose equivalents.

Postoperative Quality of Recovery Questionnaires (QoR-15) scoreMeasured at 24 hours after post anesthesia unit discharge.

The QOR-15 is a validated instrument to assess postoperative recovery from the patient's perspective, assessing overall well-being, nausea, pain, and anxiety and depression following surgery.

Length of PACU stayDuration of the patient's stay in the post anesthesia care unit, from time of admission to time of readiness for PACU discharge, on average 1 to 5 hours.

The length of the patients stay in the Post Anesthesia Care Unit will be measured in minutes.

Hospital length of stayMeasured throughout the patients stay at the hospital, on average 1 to 3 days.

The length of the patients stay following surgery.

PACU pain scores using numeric rating scaleAdministered every hour following admission to the post anesthesia care unit until discharge from the post anesthesia care unit, on average 1 to 5 hours.

Clinically documented pain scores will be recorded on a scale from 0 (best outcome) to 10 (worst outcome).

Opioid requirementsMeasured throughout the patients stay at the hospital, on average 1 to 3 days.

Opioid requirements throughout the hospital stay.

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center

🇺🇸

Boston, Massachusetts, United States

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