Investigation of the effect of video-based game application on acute pain in children under surgery

Year 2025, Volume: 8 Issue: 1, 115 - 118, 12.01.2025

Sabiha Bezgin , Sevde Kuyulu , Ahmet Atıcı

https://doi.org/10.32322/jhsm.1588509

Abstract

Aims: The aim of this study is to investigate whether video-based game application is effective on post-surgical acute pain in children.
Methods: A randomized controlled trial was conducted between September 2022 and February 2023 in the department of pediatric surgery at a research and practice hospital affiliated with the university. Eighteen children aged 2-4 who were hospitalized after undergoing surgery due to illness and/or trauma, who did not have any problems grasping the upper extremity, and whose parents allowed them to participate in the study were included in the study. Children who had chronic pain complaints for more than 3 months, regardless of the pathology requiring surgery, and children who needed to be given painkillers in the postoperative period were excluded from the study. In our study, the Postoperative Pain Scale for preschool children was applied to all children after the effect of anesthesia wore off. Children in the game group were allowed to play video-based games for 30 minutes via a handheld game console called Nintendo Switch Lite. Pain assessment was performed three times before starting the game, at the 15th minute, and at the end of the 30th minute. Children in the control group were assessed for pain three times at 15-minute intervals within 30 minutes after the effect of anesthesia wore off without any intervention. The result was calculated by taking the average of 3 evaluations in both groups.
Results: 18 children with an mean age of 3.05±0.89 years, 4 girls and 5 boys in the game group and 9 boys in the control group, were included in the study. The age and preoperative pain values were similar between the two groups (p>0.05). In the post-surgical pain evaluation, the pain mean of the play group was 1.72±0.89, while the pain mean of the control group was 4.03±1.25. A statistically significant difference was found in post-surgical pain values between the two groups (p=0.003).
Conclusion: As a result of our study, it was determined that video-based game application had a positive effect on acute pain in children undergoing surgery.

Keywords

General surgery, pain, video game

Ameliyathanedeki çocuklarda akut ağrı üzerine video tabanlı oyun uygulamasının etkisinin araştırılması

Abstract

Amaçlar: Bu çalışmanın amacı, video tabanlı oyun uygulamasının çocuklarda ameliyat sonrası akut ağrı üzerinde etkili olup olmadığını araştırmaktır.
Yöntemler: Üniversiteye bağlı bir araştırma ve uygulama hastanesinin çocuk cerrahisi bölümünde Eylül 2022 ile Şubat 2023 tarihleri ​​arasında randomize kontrollü bir çalışma yürütüldü. Hastalık ve/veya travma nedeniyle ameliyattan sonra hastaneye yatırılan, üst ekstremiteyi kavramada herhangi bir sorunu olmayan ve ebeveynleri çalışmaya katılmalarına izin veren 2-4 yaş arası 18 çocuk çalışmaya dahil edildi. Ameliyat gerektiren patolojiye bakılmaksızın 3 aydan uzun süredir kronik ağrı şikayeti olan çocuklar ve ameliyat sonrası dönemde ağrı kesici verilmesi gereken çocuklar çalışmadan hariç tutuldu. Çalışmamızda, anestezinin etkisi geçtikten sonra tüm çocuklara okul öncesi çocuklar için Ameliyat Sonrası Ağrı Ölçeği uygulandı. Oyun grubundaki çocukların Nintendo Switch Lite adlı el tipi oyun konsolu aracılığıyla 30 dakika boyunca video tabanlı oyunlar oynamalarına izin verildi. Ağrı değerlendirmesi oyun başlamadan önce, 15. dakikada ve 30. dakikanın sonunda olmak üzere üç kez yapıldı. Kontrol grubundaki çocuklara anestezinin etkisi geçtikten sonra herhangi bir müdahale yapılmadan 30 dakika içinde 15 dakikalık aralıklarla üç kez ağrı değerlendirmesi yapıldı. Sonuç her iki gruptaki 3 değerlendirmenin ortalaması alınarak hesaplandı.
Sonuçlar: Oyun grubunda 4 kız ve 5 erkek, kontrol grubunda 9 erkek olmak üzere ortalama yaşı 3,05±0,89 yıl olan 18 çocuk çalışmaya dahil edildi. Yaş ve ameliyat öncesi ağrı değerleri iki grup arasında benzerdi (p>0,05). Ameliyat sonrası ağrı değerlendirmesinde oyun grubunun ağrı ortalaması 1,72±0,89 iken kontrol grubunun ağrı ortalaması 4,03±1,25 idi. Ameliyat sonrası ağrı değerlerinde iki grup arasında istatistiksel olarak anlamlı fark bulundu (p=0,003). Sonuç: Çalışmamız sonucunda video tabanlı oyun uygulamasının cerrahi operasyon geçiren çocuklarda akut ağrı üzerine olumlu etkisi olduğu belirlendi.

Keywords

Genel cerrahi, ağrı, video oyunu

References

• Perquin CW, Hazebroek-Kampschreur AAJM, Hunfeld JAM, et al. Pain in children and adolescents: a common experience. Pain. 2000;87(1):51-58. doi:10.1016/S0304-3959(00)00269-4
• Stone ML, Lapar DJ, Kane BJ, Rasmussen SK, McGahren ED, Rodgers BM. The effect of race and gender on pediatric surgical outcomes within the United States. J Pediatr Surg. 2013;48(8):1650-1656. doi:10.1016/j.jpedsurg.2013.01.043
• Yahya Al-Sagarat A, Al-Oran HM, Obeidat H, Hamlan AM, Moxham L. Preparing the family and children for surgery. Crit Care Nurs Q. 2017; 40(2):99-107. doi:10.1097/CNQ.0000000000000146
• Çelikol Ş, Tural Büyük E, Yıldızlar O. Children’s pain, fear, and anxiety during invasive procedures. Nurs Sci Q. 2019;32(3):226-232. doi:10.1177/ 0894318419845391
• von Baeyer CL, Marche TA, Rocha EM, Salmon K. Children’s memory for pain: overview and implications for practice. J Pain. 2004;5(5):241-249. doi:10.1016/j.jpain.2004.05.001
• Franck LS, Greenberg CS, Stevens B. Pain assessment in infants and children. Pediatr Clin North Am. 2000;47(3):487-512. doi:10.1016/s0031-3955(05)70222-4
• Singh P. Effect of distraction techniques in behaviour responses to pain among toddlers receiving immunisation. Nurs J India. 2012;103(4):176-179.
• Russoniello CV, O’Brien K, Parks JM. The effectiveness of casual video games in improving mood and decreasing stress. CyberPsychol Behav. 2009;12(5):555-562. doi:10.1089/cpb.2009.0006
• Godino-Iáñez MJ, Martos-Cabrera MB, Suleiman-Martos N, et al. Play therapy as an intervention in hospitalized children: a systematic review. Healthcare (Basel). 2020;8(3):239. doi:10.3390/healthcare8030239
• Ali RR, Selim AO, Abdel Ghafar MA, Abdelraouf OR, Ali OI. Virtual reality as a pain distractor during physical rehabilitation in pediatric burns. Burns. 2022;48(2):303-308. doi:10.1016/j.burns.2021.04.031
• Eijlers R, Utens EMWJ, Staals LM, et al. Systematic review and meta-analysis of virtual reality in pediatrics: effects on pain and anxiety. Anesth Analg. 2019;129(5):1344-1353. doi:10.1213/ANE.0000000000004165
• Raeder SM, Bone JK, Patai EZ, Holmes EA, Nobre AC, Murphy SE. Emotional distraction in the context of memory-based orienting of attention. Emotion. 2019;19(8):1366-1376. doi:10.1037/emo0000506
• Sezer TA, Işık Esenay F, Korkmaz G. Okul öncesi çocuklarda ameliyat sonrası ağrı ölçeği: Türkçe geçerlilik ve güvenirliliği. Güncel Pediatri. 2021;19(1):84-91.
• Tarbell SE, Cohen TI, Marsh JL. The Toddler-Preschooler Postoperative Pain Scale: an Observational Scale for measuring postoperative pain in children aged 1-5. Preliminary report. Pain. 1992;50(3):273-280. doi:10. 1016/0304-3959(92)90031-6
• Lobel A, Engels RC, Stone LL, Burk WJ, Granic I. Video gaming and children’s psychosocial wellbeing: a longitudinal study. J Youth Adolesc. 2017;46(4):884-897. doi:10.1007/s10964-017-0646-z
• Lobel A, Granic I, Stone LL, Engels RC. Associations between children’s video game playing and psychosocial health: information from both parent and child reports. Cyberpsychol Behav Soc Netw. 2014;17(10):639-643. doi:10.1089/cyber.2014.0128
• Granic I, Lobel A, Engels RC. The benefits of playing video games. Am Psychol. 2014;69(1):66-78. doi:10.1037/a0034857
• Dwairej DA, Obeidat HM, Aloweidi AS. Video game distraction and anesthesia mask practice reduces children’s preoperative anxiety: a randomized clinical trial. J Spec Pediatr Nurs. 2020;25(1):e12272. doi:10. 1111/jspn.12272
• Demeter N, Josman N, Eisenberg E, Pud D. Who can benefit from virtual reality to reduce experimental pain? A crossover study in healthy subjects. Eur J Pain. 2015;19(10):1467-1475. doi:10.1002/ejp.678
• Alqudimat M, Mesaroli G, Lalloo C, Stinson J, Matava C. State of the art: immersive technologies for perioperative anxiety, acute, and chronic pain management in pediatric patients. Curr Anesthesiol Rep. 2021; 11(3):265-274. doi:10.1007/s40140-021-00472-3
• Lilik Lestari MP, Wanda D, Hayati H. The effectiveness of distraction (cartoon-patterned clothes and bubble-blowing) on pain and anxiety in preschool children during venipuncture in the emergency department. Compr Child Adolesc Nurs. 2017;40(1):22-28. doi:10.1080/24694193.2017. 1386967
• Boyle EA, Hainey T, Connolly TM, et al. An update to the systematic literature review of empirical evidence of the impacts and outcomes of computer games and serious games. Comput Educ. 2016;94:178-192. doi: 10.1016/j.compedu.2015.11.001
• Boyle EA, Connolly TM, Hainey T, Boyle JM. Engagement in digital entertainment games: a systematic review. Comput Human Behav. 2012; 28(3):771-780. doi:10.1016/j.chb.2011.11.020
• Suleiman-Martos N, García-Lara RA, Membrive-Jiménez MJ, et al. Effect of a game-based intervention on preoperative pain and anxiety in children: a systematic review and meta-analysis. J Clin Nurs. 2022;31(23-24): 3350-3367. doi:10.1111/jocn.16227