Objective To investigate the effectiveness of virtual roaming applied in preoperative health education for children undergoing day surgery. Methods A total of 86 children undergoing day surgery were randomly divided into two groups, with 43 in each group. The control group received routine preoperative health education, while the intervention group received preoperative health education using virtual roaming technology. Preoperative anxiety, heart rates, blood pressure, cooperation during anesthesia induction, postoperative pain and postoperative behavior change were compared between the two groups. Results Forty-two children in each group completed the study. Preoperative anxiety score, heart rates, blood pressure, cooperation during anesthesia induction, and the incidence of behavior change on the 1st and 3rd day after surgery in the intervention group were significantly lower than those in the control group (all P<0.05). There were no significant differences in postoperative pain intensity and the incidence of behavior change at postoperative day 7 between the two groups (both P>0.05). Conclusion Virtual roaming technology applied in health education can effectively relieve preoperative anxiety,enhance cooperation in anesthesia induction, stabilize heart rates and blood pressure, and reduce negative behaviors at early postoperative period in children undergoing day surgery.