Repeated virtual reality sessions in fibromyalgia: a prospective observational study.

AIMS: Fibromyalgia (FM) is a chronic pain syndrome with limited effective treatments. This study evaluated virtual reality (VR) as an adjunct therapy.

METHODS

Participants used the HealthyMind program delivered via a Pico G2 4K Enterprise headset in eight supervised, seated 20-minute sessions over four weeks, featuring nature relaxation, guided imagery, and meditation. Primary outcome was Pain Numerical Rating Scale (NRS) at one month (M1); secondary outcomes included PCS, PSEQ, and HADS.

RESULTS

Fifty participants completed baseline and M1 assessments. Pain significantly decreased from 6.8 ± 1.5 to 5.8 ± 1.9 (-14.8%, p < 0.001; effect size = 0.56). Significant improvements were observed in catastrophizing, self-efficacy, anxiety, and depression.

CONCLUSION

Repeated HealthyMind VR use was associated with reduced pain and improved psychological outcomes in FM patients.

CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: www.clinicaltrials.gov identifier is (NCT05567861).