Introduction: When
children are admitted to hospitals or other healthcare facilities, they routinely undergo medical interventions as part of diagnosis or treatment. Children often experience severe
pain and
anxiety during invasive procedures such as injections, sampling, or dressings. These experiences not only negatively impact the quality of care, but can also lead to lasting psychological consequences. Virtual reality is a relatively new term in the health field that has been proposed as a novel, non-pharmacological intervention to reduce
pain and
anxiety in children. The aim of this study was to review the available evidence on the use of
virtual reality in reducing
pain and
anxiety in
children undergoing invasive procedures. Methods: In this review, a systematic search was conducted in the PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar databases using the keywords "Virtual Reality", "Pain", "Anxiety", "Children", and "Invasive Procedures". Articles published between ۲۰۱۵ and ۲۰۲۵ were reviewed. After assessing the quality and inclusion criteria, ۲۴ articles were included in the final analysis. Findings: The results of the reviewed studies showed that the use of
virtual reality as an appropriate non-pharmacological method and distraction tool reduces the severity of
pain and
anxiety in children. This strategy has been particularly successful in stressful clinical settings such as emergency departments, clinics, and pediatric oncology centers and has also been reported to be highly accepted by parents and nurses. Conclusion: Virtual reality can be used as an efficient, safe, and acceptable tool in the management of
pain and
anxiety caused by invasive procedures in children. Training nurses and providing the necessary equipment is essential in this regard. Integrating this method into clinical protocols will be an important step towards improving the quality of care in pediatric nursing.
