HypnoVR, a company developing virtual reality-based medical hypnosis solutions to manage pain and stress, has said it has concluded three promising retrospective clinical trials for managing pain and anxiety during and after medical procedures.

The trials took place in the fields of post-operative pain reduction, paediatric dentistry and medically assisted reproduction – and the company is to expand the scope of its medical hypnosis research this year.

The first study took place over six months at the Hospital Hautepierre in Strasbourg. As part of the trial, HypnoVR was used with selected children, in addition to standard pain management, as support for post-operative pain and to limit opioid consumption following scoliosis surgery. The 20-minute HypnoVR session took place once a day within the first 72 hours following surgery, while the control group received the standard care. It was concluded that the group additionally treated with virtual reality hypnosis showed significantly lower need for supplemental treatment for anxiety and total post-operative opioid consumption, with a 45% reduction of post-operative morphine consumption over 72 hours, while patients’ bed-time was reduced by 21 hours.

Results were presented in October 2018 at the Annual Meeting of the American Society of Anesthesiology.

In the second clinical trial, patients nine-years-old and over, during dental procedures at the paediatric odontology unit of the University of Strasbourg, were selected and exposed to a VR immersion session featuring a natural environment. The anxiety level of paediatric patients was evaluated on the APAIS scale (The Amsterdam Preoperative Anxiety and Information Scale), with results showing the level of anxiety decreased by 45%, along with a high level of satisfaction, with an average score of 8 out of 10 from patients.

Results were presented in March 2018 at the Annual Meeting of the Société Française d'Odontologie Pédiatrique.

The third clinical study focused on alleviating pain and anxiety during ovocyte retrieval, a medically assisted reproduction procedure, at the University Hospital of Strasbourg, where HypnoVR was offered to patients as part of the standard anaesthetic care. During the medical procedure, 38 patients were exposed to a 20-minute VR immersion featuring a natural landscape and a soothing voice, in addition to the administration of low-level sedatives. Results show that 73.7% of patients felt “disconnected” and 89.4% of patients considered the VR headset provided additional comfort, with a high level of satisfaction (median rating of four on a scale 0 to 5).

Results were published in March 2019 at the Journée Francophone de l'Hypnose 2019.

Nicolas Schaettel, president and co-founder of HypnoVR said: “HypnoVR is delighted with the results of these three retrospective clinical studies. We are excited about further upcoming clinical trials that could show how promising our virtual reality technology is for pain and anxiety management in hospitals or for independent practicians. We believe that in the future virtual reality hypnosis will become standard complementary care for addressing pain, stress and anxiety in hospitalised patients.”

HypnoVR’s medical device for hypnosedation aims to improve the quality of care and comfort for patients and to optimise pre- and post-operative rehabilitation by decreasing chemical therapy and its side effects, as well as lowering costs for healthcare institutions.