The Efficacy of a Mindfulness-Based Virtual Reality Intervention to Reduce Pain in Postoperative Patients

The goal of this randomized clinical trial is to evaluate whether a virtual reality (VR) mindfulness intervention can reduce anxiety and postoperative pain in adults undergoing surgery, primarily hernia and varicose vein procedures. The main research questions are: * Does a preoperative VR mindfulness intervention reduce anxiety before surgery? * Does this reduction in anxiety result in lower postoperative pain compared to usual care? * Does the intervention help prevent chronic pain two weeks after surgery? Researchers will compare a VR mindfulness intervention group with a treatment-as-usual (TAU) group to assess the intervention's effectiveness. Participants will: * Be randomly assigned to one of two groups: * Experimental group: Receive a VR mindfulness session on the first day of hospitalization (one day before surgery). * Control group: Receive standard hospital care (no intervention). * Complete psychological and pain assessments at four time points: 1. Before the intervention (Day 1) 2. Immediately after the intervention (only the experimental group, Day 1) 3. After surgery (Day 2) 4. Two weeks after surgery (follow-up) * Report pain intensity using the Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) at four postoperative time points. Before enrollment, participants will undergo a structured interview to assess eligibility. This study aims to determine whether reducing preoperative anxiety through VR mindfulness contributes to improved pain management and a lower risk of developing chronic pain following surgery.

NCT Number	NCT06961695
Lead Sponsor	Babes-Bolyai University Collaborators: Cluj-Napoca County Emergency Clinical Hospital, Surgery Department 2
Conditions	Pain, Postoperative, Anxiety Preoperative
Enrollment	64 participants
Start Date	2025-05-12
Primary Completion	2025-06-30 (estimated)
Study Completion	2025-07-05 (estimated)
Updated on ClinicalTrials.gov	2025-05-08