ICU sedation, delirium & recovery
ICU-specific virtual reality for mental health after critical illness: an international three-arm randomized clinical trial
Authors' conclusion
In this multicentre randomized clinical trial, a single ICU-VR video did not improve PTSD, anxiety, depression, or HRQoL at six months versus standard care.
Study context
- Population
- Adults (≥ 18 years) with ICU stay ≥ 72 h and mechanical ventilation ≥ 24 h, eleven hospitals80% follow-up at six months
- Participants
- 344 adults
- Comparison
- Early or late ICU-specific virtual reality video vs standard care
- Primary endpoint
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptom severity (Impact of Event Scale-Revised, range 0-88)
- Follow-up
- Six months (T3)
Methodological detailsthree-arm, multicentre, international
- Three-arm
- Multicentre
- International
Primary result
As reported in the abstract
six months
β
0.32
95% CI −3.38 to 4.02; P = 0.87
Early ICU-VR
Late ICU-VR
−0.82
95% CI −4.62 to 2.97; P = 0.67
Secondary outcomes
Anxiety, depression, health-related quality of life (HRQoL)
- No between-group differences
- all adjusted p > 0.05
Patient rating of ICU-VR (understanding of ICU experience, overall satisfaction)
- Rated highly; median satisfaction
- 8/10
Original publication
ICU-specific virtual reality for mental health after critical illness: an international three-arm randomized clinical trial. Crit Care. Published 24 July 2026. doi:10.
Composed by AI from the published abstract and checked against it. How Briefs are made →