Digital Play and Distraction Interventions for Pediatric Pain and Anxiety Management: A Scoping Review and Evidence Map for Post-Laparotomy Care

Yuliana Yuliana; Yuni Purwati; Yuli Isnaeni

doi:10.30994/jnp.v10i1.1195

Authors

Yuliana Yuliana Faculty of Health Sciences, Universitas ’Aisyiyah Yogyakarta, Yogyakarta, Indonesia https://orcid.org/0009-0006-3074-0888
Yuni Purwati Faculty of Health Sciences, Universitas ’Aisyiyah Yogyakarta, Yogyakarta, Indonesia https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3545-315X
Yuli Isnaeni Faculty of Health Sciences, Universitas ’Aisyiyah Yogyakarta, Yogyakarta, Indonesia https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6397-1774

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.30994/jnp.v10i1.1195

Keywords:

Children, Digital Distraction, Play Therapy, Postoperative Pain, Scoping Review

Abstract

Background: Postoperative pain and anxiety after pediatric surgery impair mobility and recovery. Digital play-based interventions, distraction, and interactive media are non-pharmacological adjuncts to standard analgesia, but the evidence for their use after laparotomy is unclear.
Purpose: To map the evidence on digital play and distraction interventions, including digital design-based play therapy, for pain and anxiety in children receiving procedural, perioperative, or postoperative care, using the Population–Concept–Context framework, and to evaluate how far this evidence can be transferred to post-laparotomy care.
Methods: This scoping review followed the Joanna Briggs Institute methodology and the reporting guideline for scoping reviews of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses. PubMed, PubMed Central, and Google Scholar were searched in May 2026 for primary quantitative studies published in English from 2020 to 2025. Two reviewers screened records independently. Data were charted with a piloted extraction form and synthesized numerically and narratively.
Results: Of 276 records identified, 17 primary studies met the eligibility criteria. They examined virtual reality, mobile applications, video games, interactive multimedia, and non-digital play in procedural pain (7 studies), preoperative anxiety (5 studies), and postoperative recovery (5 studies). Thirteen studies assessed pain and 15 assessed anxiety, and all reported reductions in pain or anxiety. Media, devices, and protocols varied widely. No study reported outcomes specific to children after laparotomy, and none evaluated digital drawing, coloring, or interface-design activities.
Conclusion: Digital distraction offers promising complementary benefits for pediatric procedural distress and preoperative anxiety. However, no direct evidence exists for post-laparotomy care, so controlled feasibility and safety trials are needed before any claim of clinical efficacy.

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