Eur Spine J. 2023 Nov 18. doi: 10.1007/s00586-023-08040-5. Online ahead of print.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Chronic low back ache (CLBA) is a common condition that is conventionally managed with physical therapy and analgesics. Recently, virtual reality-based interventions have been tried out in the management of CLBA. Their effectiveness, however has not been established. This meta-analysis aims to find out if the application of VR will lead to better pain relief, as compared to conventional techniques in adults with CLBA.
METHODS: The literature search was carried out in three online databases for potential randomized controlled trials that compared VR-based interventions with conventional treatment in CLBA. Data on outcome parameters were recorded. Meta-analysis was carried out with the help of appropriate software.
RESULTS: Seven studies having data on 507 subjects were included in the meta-analysis. Their mean ages were 48.4 years. There were 252 subjects in the VR group and 255 in the control group. VR-based interventions were found to have a statistically significant improvement in the pain intensity compared with conventional techniques (p – 0.005).
CONCLUSION: VR-based interventions are effective in the management of CLBA in the short term. Further research with longer follow-up is required to evaluate if these improvements are persistent in the long term.
PMID:37979068 | DOI:10.1007/s00586-023-08040-5
