Virtual reality can help ease anxiety, claustrophobia during cardiac imaging

by American College of Cardiology

edited by Swati Mestri, reviewed by Andrew Zinin

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Patients who experience anxiety or claustrophobia can have difficulty completing important cardiac imaging, including positron emission tomography (PET) and computed tomography (CT) scans.

A new study being presented at the American College of Cardiology Quality Summit 2026 found that 95% of patients who used a virtual reality (VR) distraction during cardiac PET/CT imaging completed the ordered imaging study. This solution offers potential savings to hospital systems and patients by reducing incomplete imaging.

"Our most important outcome was that we were able to support patients experiencing claustrophobia during cardiac PET/CT without compromising the diagnostic integrity of their imaging," said Kaitlyn Amidon, BSN, RN, MBA, a registered nurse at UCHealth Southern Region in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and the study's lead author.

"This is particularly important because patient comfort cannot come at the expense of the clinical value of the examination. Ultimately, the project demonstrates that a relatively simple, nonpharmacologic intervention can help address a patient-centered barrier to clinically valuable cardiac testing while preserving the image quality physicians need to guide cardiovascular care."

Care team members in the noninvasive cardiac testing department at UCHealth evaluated 105 patients who used VR during cardiac PET/CT imaging from July 2025 to March 2026. Patients self-reported anxiety and/or claustrophobia, and all but four patients included in the study reported some degree of claustrophobia.

According to Amidon, as part of the routine preimaging nursing assessment, patients were asked about claustrophobia, and those who reported it were specifically offered the use of a virtual reality headset during their testing. Patients were eligible for VR if they did not have a history of seizures and were not undergoing an imaging study involving fluorodeoxyglucose (18F-FDG) radiotracer.

The VR program was also advertised to all patients through flyers posted within the department. The four participants who did not report claustrophobia requested to use VR after learning that it was available and otherwise met eligibility criteria.

Overall, 95% of patients successfully completed the ordered imaging study. Additionally, 80% of patients wore the VR headset for the entire duration of the imaging procedure, indicating high tolerance of the device.

More than 75% of patients reported a positive experience using VR; the most commonly reported physical discomfort was headset fit. The most frequently observed technical issue was a transient Wi-Fi-related error message; however, these interruptions were brief and did not prevent study completion.

The VR headset provides immersive visual and auditory experiences designed to redirect patients' attention away from the scanner environment. Patients could choose from a curated selection of calming experiences, such as nature- and travel-themed environments.

"Early in the initiative, we began with a consumer-grade VR headset, which allowed us to explore the concept and identify practical considerations related to patient comfort, content selection, device management and integration into the imaging workflow," Amidon said.

"Those early experiences helped inform our transition to a hospital-provided VR system designed for use in the health care setting. That evolution demonstrates that successful implementation involves more than the technology itself—it requires adapting the technology to the clinical environment and learning from both patients and frontline staff."

The VR intervention also demonstrated a significant financial impact. The complete system required an initial investment of $4,387 and an ongoing cost of $168 per month. Researchers estimated that each aborted imaging study costs approximately $3,000, based on CMS reimbursement, supply expenses and staffing costs. Therefore, even a modest reduction in canceled or aborted testing can result in cost savings while preserving scanner time and staff resources.

Based on positive patient feedback and high study completion rates, UCHealth continues to offer the VR program in its noninvasive cardiac testing department. Its use has also expanded beyond cardiac PET/CT imaging.

The VR system is also available to patients undergoing other noninvasive cardiac testing, including echocardiograms and nuclear stress testing using a SPECT camera, although it is used less frequently during those examinations.

According to Amidon, staff have also used VR as a distraction technique for patients with significant needle aversion during IV placement.

"The goal has been to make VR available as an additional patient-centered, nonpharmacologic tool when anxiety, claustrophobia or procedural distress may create a barrier to care," she said.

Study limitations include that this was a quality improvement initiative rather than a randomized controlled study, and there was no comparable preintervention completion rate.

VR was implemented in conjunction with a new PET/CT system that changed patient positioning within the scanner, making completion data from the previous system an inappropriate historical comparison. Therefore, the observed completion rate should not be interpreted as a measured improvement over baseline.

Key medical concepts

Anxiety

Clinical categories

CardiologyPsychology & Mental healthDiagnostic radiology Provided by American College of Cardiology Who's behind this story?

Swati Mestri

Swati Mestri holds a bachelor's degree in Electronics Engineering and has worked as a content editor since 2019. She has experience editing research documents across technology, health care, and materials science, and has a particular interest in technology and space. Full profile →

Andrew Zinin

Master's in physics with research experience. Long-time science news enthusiast. Plays key role in Science X's editorial success. Full profile →

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