Copyright: ©Author(s) 2026. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license. No commercial re-use. See permissions. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc.
World J Gastrointest Endosc. Mar 16, 2026; 18(3): 117820
Published online Mar 16, 2026. doi: 10.4253/wjge.v18.i3.117820
Published online Mar 16, 2026. doi: 10.4253/wjge.v18.i3.117820
Virtual reality training for gastrointestinal endoscopy: A systematic review of efficacy and outcomes
Eyad Gadour, Zahra Al Saeed, Mohammed S AlQahtani, Multiorgan Transplant Centre of Excellence, Liver Transplantation Unit, King Fahad Specialist Hospital, Dammam 32253, Saudi Arabia
Eyad Gadour, Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Zamam University College, Khartoum 11113, Sudan
Bogdan Miutescu, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Internal Medicine II, Victor Babes University of Medicine and Pharmacy Timisoara, Timisoara 300041, Romania
Camelia Nica, Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, University of Medicine and Pharmacy Victor Babes Timisoara, Timisoara 300041, Timi, Romania
Ehsaneh Taheri, Liver and Pancreatobiliary Diseases Research Center, Digestive Diseases Research Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran 1411713135, Iran
Bodour Raheem, Department of Gastroenterology, King Salaman Medical City, Madinah 4235, Saudi Arabia
Antonio Facciorusso, Gastroenterology Unit, Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Salento, Lecce 73100, Puglia, Italy
Mohammed S AlQahtani, Department of Surgery, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam 31441, Saudi Arabia
Author contributions: Gadour E, Miutescu B, Facciorusso A, and AlQahtani MS contributed substantially to study conceptualization and design, data acquisition, analysis, and interpretation; Gadour E and Miutescu B led the drafting and critical revision of the manuscript for important intellectual content; Nica C, Taheri E, Al Saeed Z, Raheem B, and AlQahtani MS provided support in data collection, methodology refinement, and manuscript review; and all authors have read and approved the final version of the manuscript and agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
PRISMA 2009 Checklist statement: The authors have read the PRISMA 2009 Checklist, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the PRISMA 2009 Checklist.
Corresponding author: Bogdan Miutescu, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor, Consultant, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Internal Medicine II, Victor Babes University of Medicine and Pharmacy Timisoara, Piata Eftimie Murgu 2, Timisoara 300041, Romania. bmiutescu@yahoo.com
Received: December 17, 2025
Revised: January 5, 2026
Accepted: February 3, 2026
Published online: March 16, 2026
Processing time: 86 Days and 17 Hours
Revised: January 5, 2026
Accepted: February 3, 2026
Published online: March 16, 2026
Processing time: 86 Days and 17 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: This article synthesizes evidence from 30 interventional studies involving 901 clinicians to evaluate the efficacy of virtual reality (VR) training in gastrointestinal endoscopy. VR simulation improves trainee competency, procedural independence, and patient safety across key procedures, including esophagogastroduodenoscopy, colonoscopy, endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography, and endoscopic ultrasound. Performance gains with VR were comparable to those achieved with conventional training, supporting its role as an adjunct in endoscopic education. Heterogeneity in study design limited meta-analysis, underscoring the need for standardized VR training protocols and further research to assess long-term clinical outcomes.