Evaluation of the Effects of Virtual Reality on Preoperative Anxiety in Refractive Surgery

Evaluation of the Effects of Virtual Reality on Preoperative Anxiety in Refractive Surgery

The objective of this study is to determine to what extent the use of a software application prior to refractive surgery involving multisensory immersion (visual and auditory) in a hypnotic and relaxing sound and visual environment can reduce anxiety levels.

The assessment of preoperative anxiety levels will be based on the administration of a psychometric scale (APAIS scale) and the measurement of salivary cortisol, which is a sensitive marker of the patient's stress level.

This is a prospective, randomized, open-label, single-center study conducted on two parallel groups of patients undergoing refractive surgery (virtual reality preoperative conditioning or routine preoperative procedure). Therapeutic benefit is based on the assessment of preoperative anxiety using the APAIS scale.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Patient aged 18 years or older,
• Patient who has read and signed the consent form for participation in the study after a reflection period (between 10 and 45 minutes)
• Patient who is a candidate for refractive surgery

Exclusion Criteria:

• Contraindication to virtual reality (uncontrolled epilepsy, hearing impairment)
• Pregnant or breastfeeding patient
• Cushing's disease, Addison's disease, hypo- or hyperthyroidism
• Patient treated with topical or systemic corticosteroids
• Patient treated with neuroleptics, anxiolytics, or antidepressants
• Patient under legal protection, guardianship, or curatorship
• Patient participating in another blinded research study
• Patient not affiliated with the French social security system
• Patient unable to understand the information provided and/or give written informed consent: dementia, psychosis, impaired consciousness, non-French-speaking patient