Can a virtual meadow or a Mind's eye stream calm hospital anxiety?
NCT ID NCT07765355
First seen Aug 14, 2026 · Last updated Aug 14, 2026
Summary
This trial tests two ways to bring nature to older adults stuck in the hospital for weeks: watching 360-degree nature videos through a virtual reality headset, or listening to audio guides that prompt them to imagine the same scenes. Both approaches use identical nature themes—meadow, stream, and mountain—but differ in how the experience reaches the person: through the senses or through imagination. The study asks whether either approach can reduce anxiety more than usual care alone, and whether the body's stress response, measured by heart rate variability, differs between the two. Participants are adults 65 and older who have been hospitalized for at least two weeks, and each person serves as their own comparison before being randomly assigned to one of the two methods.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Immersive virtual reality nature exposure (360-degree nature videos via headset) and guided imagery (audio-guided mental visualization)
- What this could lead to
- If effective, these nature-based approaches could offer drug-free ways to reduce anxiety and improve well-being for older adults during long hospital stays.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small early-stage trial, so results may not apply broadly. The effects might be modest, and some participants may find the headset uncomfortable or the imagery difficult.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 60 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Jun 2025
- Expected to finish
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Jan 2027
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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65 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Accepted
You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Aged 65 years or older * Receiving inpatient hospital care, with at least two weeks of hospitalisation at the time of enrolment * Montreal Cognitive Assessment (Hungarian version) score of 18 or above, with education correction * Physically able to safely wear a head-mounted virtual reality display * Adequate corrected or uncorrected vision and hearing * Able to communicate in Hungarian * Stable psychiatric and cardiovascular condition, as determined from medical history and in consultation with the treating physician * Able to provide independent written informed consent Exclusion Criteria: * Epilepsy with recurrent seizures, or photosensitivity * Neurological condition associated with increased risk during virtual reality use, including Meniere's disease and significant carotid stenosis * Active psychosis, hallucinations, or severe depression with psychotic features * Open wound or skin lesion on the face, chronic neck pain, or spinal condition preventing safe use of the head-mounted display * Severe uncorrectable sensory impairment * Unstable psychotropic medication during the preceding eight weeks * Regular use of analgesic or psychotropic medication that may substantially affect perception of the experience * Active alcohol or substance use disorder within the past year * Refusal or inability to provide informed consent Enrolment is deferred, rather than excluded, in the presence of active delirium or infectious illness, until the condition resolves.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
2 sites. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Semmelweis University, Department of Geriatrics and Nursing Science
RECRUITINGBudapest, 1097, Hungary
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Semmelweis University, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine
RECRUITINGBudapest, 1121, Hungary
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