SynthesisMusculoskeletal care2025
Effectiveness of Virtual Reality for Pain Management in Musculoskeletal Disorders Across Anatomical Regions: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
Synthesis in Musculoskeletal care, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- The Role of Virtual Reality, Exergames, and Digital Technologies in Knee Osteoarthritis Rehabilitation Before or After Total Knee Arthroplasty: A Systematic Review of the Interventions in Elderly Patients.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2025Pooled it
- Trial
- Feasibility, effectiveness and patient experience of virtual reality technology in intensive care units patients: A mixed-methods systematic review.International journal of nursing studies advances · 2026Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
10 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionThe use of virtual reality (VR) in physiotherapy is expanding across various fields; however, while extensively researched in neurology, its application in musculoskeletal (MSK) disorders remains underexplored. This review aims to evaluate the effectiveness of VR in pain management across different anatomical regions. MATERIALS AND
methodsThe research was conducted using the MEDLINE (via PubMed), Cochrane Library, Scopus, Web of Science, and Embase databases, including randomized controlled trials that evaluated the effectiveness of VR interventions, encompassing immersive VR, specialised non-immersive VR, and gaming platforms. The primary outcomes focused on pain reduction. Data were extracted from the included studies, and methodological quality was assessed using the Revised Cochrane risk-of-bias tool for Randomized Trials (RoB 2). A meta-analysis was conducted using both fixed- and random-effects models to synthesise the findings.
resultsFrom 1265 records, 27 articles met the eligibility criteria, comprising a total of 1191 participants. Of these, 20 studies contributed data to the meta-analyses. Significant findings were observed for pain relief in the knee region (SMD = - 0.33; 95% CI: - 0.55 to - 0.10; I
conclusionsVR shows potential for managing pain in MSK disorders, particularly knee conditions, with significant effectiveness using specialised non-immersive VR. However, high heterogeneity across other regions limits broader recommendations.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What Socratic holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.