Virtual Reality (VR) Audiovisual Distraction to Reduce Pain and Anxiety for Prone Pain Procedures

This study evaluates whether virtual reality (VR) audiovisual distraction can reducepain, anxiety, and the need for pain and anxiety medications during prone painprocedures, compared to standard care alone. The trial design is a two‐arm, parallelassignment, randomized controlled trial at a single site, the UC Davis Pain MedicineClinic. Patients will be randomized in a 1:1 allocation to the intervention (commerciallyavailable virtual reality headset (Meta Quest 3) with audiovisual calming nature sceneand an ergonomic cushion/support) vs control (standard medical care). The primary outcomewill be a composite outcome analyzed using the Win Ratio method comparing opioid/sedativemedication use, intra‐procedural pain scores, and intra‐procedural anxiety scores betweengroups. Approximately 230 people at UC Davis are expected to participate (Up to 20patients for the preliminary run‐in period to acclimatize research and clinical staff and210 total for the randomized clinical trial). Each participant's involvement consists ofone visit, estimated at 30 minutes.