Abstract: Objective To explore the influence of immersive virtual reality (VR) interaction systems on acute and chronic pain and quality of life in patients after thoracic surgery.Methods A total of 118 patients who underwent thoracic surgery and were admitted to the hospital from December 2023 to December 2024 were selected and randomly divided into two groups.The control group (59 cases) was given patient-controlled intravenous analgesia after the operation,while the observation group (59 cases) was additionally given immersive VR interaction technology on the basis of the control group.The pain degree,sleep time,hospital stay,dosage of analgesic drugs,heart rate,mean arterial pressuree,blood oxygen saturation,quality of life score and chronic pain conditions of the two groups of patients were compared.Results After intervention,the degree of pain in the observation group at rest (painless 39),cough (painless 35),and activity (painless 31) was all lower than that in the control group [at rest (painless 26),cough (painless 19),activity (painless 20)] (P<0.05).The hospitalization time and the dosage of analgesic drugs in the observation group were both lower (P<0.05).After intervention,the sleep duration and blood oxygen saturation in both groups increased,and observation group were higher (P<0.05).The heart rate and mean arterial pressuree in both groups decreased,and observation group were lower (P<0.05).After intervention,the scores of physiology,psychology,environment and social relationship of patients in both groups increased,and the observation group were higher (P<0.05).Three months after the operation,the incidence of chronic pain in the observation group and the control group was 16.95% (10/59) and 37.29% (22/59),respectively,the incidence in the observation group was lower (P<0.05).Conclusion The immersive VR interaction system for patients after thoracic surgery can relieve pain,increase sleep time,improve heart rate,mean arterial pressuree and blood oxygen saturation,enhance the quality of life and reduce the incidence of chronic pain.

Key words: immersive virtual reality interaction system, thoracic surgery, acute and chronic pain, quality of life