Virtual Reality Helps Claustrophobic Patients Complete Cardiac PET/CT Scans

Anxiety and claustrophobia—intense fear of confined spaces—often prevent patients from completing cardiac positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT). Aborted scans delay diagnosis, consume scanner time, and add avoidable cost. Clinicians need nonpharmacologic strategies that reduce distress without compromising image quality. To help address this challenge, a newly introduced virtual reality distraction approach aims to improve tolerance of cardiac imaging.

UCHealth Southern Region (Colorado Springs, CO, US) evaluated a virtual reality (VR) program in its noninvasive cardiac testing department and presented the results at the American College of Cardiology Quality Summit 2026. The quality improvement initiative included 105 patients undergoing cardiac PET/CT between July 2025 and March 2026. Participants self-reported anxiety and/or claustrophobia, and nearly all reported some degree of claustrophobia.

The VR intervention used a headset to deliver immersive visual and auditory scenes designed to redirect attention away from the scanner environment. Patients could choose calming nature- or travel-themed content. During preimaging assessment, nursing staff screened patients for claustrophobia and offered VR when appropriate.

Eligibility criteria excluded patients with a seizure history and those scheduled for studies using fluorodeoxyglucose (18F-FDG). The program was also publicized through departmental flyers, prompting four patients without claustrophobia to request VR after learning it was available. These patients were included if they met the remaining eligibility requirements.

Overall, 95% of patients who used VR completed the ordered imaging study. Eighty percent wore the headset for the entire scan, indicating good tolerability, and more than three-quarters reported a positive experience.

The team reported a total system investment of USD 4,387, with ongoing costs of USD 168 per month. Because each aborted imaging study is estimated to cost approximately USD 3,000, even modest reductions in cancellations could help preserve scanner time, staff resources, and overall costs. Based on early results, the VR program continues in the department and is now available for echocardiography and single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) nuclear stress testing. It has also been used to distract patients with needle aversion during intravenous placement.

Study limitations include the quality improvement design and the absence of a preintervention completion rate. VR was also implemented alongside a new PET/CT system that changed patient positioning, preventing historical comparisons. As a result, the completion rate should not be interpreted as a measured improvement over baseline.

“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. 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,” said Kaitlyn Amidon, BSN, RN, MBA, a registered nurse at UCHealth Southern Region in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and the study’s lead author.

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