Abstract: Objective: To evaluate the impact of Virtual Reality (VR) technology on Post-Intensive Care Syndrome (PICS) in critically ill patients. Methods: PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, EBSCO, SinoMed, CNKI and WanFang Data were searched for randomized controlled trials or quasi-experimental studies about VR technology among critically ill patients. Meta-analysis was implemented with RevMan 5.4. Results: Nine studies involving 616 patients were included. Meta-analysis indicated that VR technology reduced anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and pain, and enhanced the quality of life in critically ill patients. The effects on sleep quality and cognitive function were unclear. Moreover, there was a paucity of intervention studies on the impact of VR technology on the physiological function of critically ill patients. Conclusion: VR technology plays a positive role in critically ill patients with PICS. Due to the limited number of included studies, more high-quality studies with a large sample are needed in the future.

Key words: Virtual Reality; critically ill patients; Post-Intensive Care Syndrome; systematic review