Evidence map›Paper›PMID 36865772›Full record

ArticleDigital health

A scoping review to assess the effects of virtual reality in medical education and clinical care.

Eshita Dhar, Umashankar Upadhyay, Yaoru Huang, Mohy Uddin, George Manias, Dimosthenis Kyriazis, Usman Wajid, Hamza AlShawaf, Shabbir Syed Abdul

Abstract readScoping Review
In one paragraph

Article in Digital health. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 46 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
46citing papers in PubMed, 3 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

46 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. [Empowering narrative medicine with artificial intelligence: a new perspective in pediatric medical education].Zhongguo dang dai er ke za zhi = Chinese journal of contemporary pediatrics · 2026
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  13. Use of Virtual Patients and Related Training Outcomes in Postgraduate Psychiatry Residency Education: A Scoping Review.Academic psychiatry : the journal of the American Association of Directors of Psychiatric Residency Training and the Association for Academic Psychiatry · 2026
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Eshita DharGraduate Institute of Biomedical Informatics, College of Medical Science and Technology, Taipei Medical University, Taipei.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6055-2593
Umashankar UpadhyayGraduate Institute of Biomedical Informatics, College of Medical Science and Technology, Taipei Medical University, Taipei.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2581-8007
Yaoru HuangDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Taipei Medical University Hospital, Taipei.
Mohy UddinResearch Quality Management Section, King Abdullah International Medical Research Center, King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, Ministry of National Guard - Health Affairs, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
George ManiasDepartment of Digital Systems, University of Piraeus, Piraeus, Greece.
Dimosthenis KyriazisDepartment of Digital Systems, University of Piraeus, Piraeus, Greece.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7019-7214
Usman WajidInformation Catalyst for Enterprise, Northwich, UK.
Hamza AlShawafHealth Informatics & Information Management Department, Faculty of Allied Health Sciences, Kuwait University, Safat, Kuwait.
Shabbir Syed AbdulGraduate Institute of Biomedical Informatics, College of Medical Science and Technology, Taipei Medical University, Taipei.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0412-767X

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Due to the challenges and restrictions posed by COVID-19 pandemic, technology and digital solutions played an important role in the rendering of necessary healthcare services, notably in medical education and clinical care. The aim of this scoping review was to analyze and sum up the most recent developments in Virtual Reality (VR) use for therapeutic care and medical education, with a focus on training medical students and patients. We identified 3743 studies, of which 28 were ultimately selected for the review. The search strategy followed the most recent Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis for scoping review (PRISMA-ScR) guidelines. 11 studies (39.3%) in the field of medical education assessed different domains, such as knowledge, skills, attitudes, confidence, self-efficacy, and empathy. 17 studies (60.7%) focused on clinical care, particularly in the areas of mental health, and rehabilitation. Among these, 13 studies also investigated user experiences and feasibility in addition to clinical outcomes. Overall, the findings of our review reported considerable improvements in terms of medical education and clinical care. VR systems were also found to be safe, engaging, and beneficial by the studies' participants. There were huge variations in studies with respect to the study designs, VR contents, devices, evaluation methods, and treatment periods. In the future, studies may focus on creating definitive guidelines that can help in improving patient care further. Hence, there is an urgent need for researchers to collaborate with the VR industry and healthcare professionals to foster a better understanding of contents and simulation development.

Indexed as

clinical carehealthcaremedical educationtreatmentVirtual reality

Identifiers

PMID36865772
PMCPMC9972057

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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 OpenQuestion graph.