Impact of Virtual Operating Room Tours on Relieving Perioperative Anxiety in Adult Patients: A Systematic Review.

Purpose: To evaluate the effects of virtual operating room tours on perioperative anxiety in adult patients.

Design: This study was a systematic review of randomized controlled trials (RCTs).

Methods: PubMed, Cochrane Library, Embase, Web of Science, Proquest, Scopus, SinoMed, CNKI, and WanFang were systematically searched for English and Chinese RCTs published up to November 18, 2021, for studies on the effectiveness of virtual operating room tours in reducing perioperative anxiety in adult patients (>18 years of age). Primary and secondary outcomes were perioperative anxiety levels and understanding level of perioperative information and patient satisfaction, respectively. The data were synthesized using a qualitative method. Findings: Five studies were found eligible for inclusion; 3 studies showed a significant decrease in perioperative anxiety levels in patients of the virtual operating room tours group. Furthermore, the overall satisfaction, understanding of perioperative information, and preoperative preparedness were significantly enhanced respectively in 3 studies.

Conclusions: This study showed the effectiveness of virtual operating room tour on alleviating perioperative anxiety on adult patients. Furthermore, the satisfaction and understanding of perioperative information in intervention group improved owing to these tours. Future quantitative studies are needed to support these findings.