Hatice YAĞCI KARAMANLI, Nuray BİNGÖL
Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences - 2026;56(5):1535-1545
Background/aim: Sleep quality and mental health are negatively affected in many patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). The study was conducted to evaluate the effects of virtual reality (VR) on sleep quality and mental well-being. Materials and methods: The study was designed as a randomized controlled trial. Data were collected from patients with MS who presented to a hospital in Türkiye. The study was completed by 21 participants in the experimental group and 22 participants in the control group. Participants in the experimental group watched nature videos using VR headsets for 6 weeks. Participants completed the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-Being Scale (WEMWBS). The study was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (Identifier: NCT06074419). Results: Baseline PSQI and WEMWBS scores were similar between the experimental and control groups (p > 0.05). After the 6-week intervention, the mean total PSQI score was significantly lower in the experimental group than in the control group (p = 0.024), with a moderate-to-large effect size (Cohen's d = 0.679), indicating improved sleep quality. Additionally, the mean WEMWBS score was significantly higher in the experimental group than in the control group (p = 0.047), with a moderate-to-large effect size (Cohen's d = 0.687), indicating improved mental well-being. Overall, the VR-based nature video intervention was associated with improvements in sleep quality and mental well-being. Conclusion: The VR-based nature video intervention may enhance the quality of nursing care for patients with MS. While the VR-based nature video intervention may enhance nursing care for patients with MS, the absence of any intervention in the comparison group prevents the specific effects of VR from being fully distinguished from placebo or novelty effects. Therefore, the findings should be interpreted with caution. Further research is required to confirm these findings and support their implementation in clinical practice.
