Gaming supports youth with acquired brain injury? A pilot study.
OBJECTIVE
To explore the effects of usage of the Nintendo Wii on physical, cognitive and social functioning in patients with acquired brain injury (ABI).


METHODS
This multi-centre, observational proof-of-concept study included children, adolescents and young adults with ABI aged 6-29 years. A standardized, yet individually tailored 12-week intervention with the Nintendo Wii was delivered by trained instructors. The treatment goals were set on an individual basis and included targets regarding physical, mental and/or social functioning. Outcome assessments were done at baseline and after 12 weeks and included: the average number of minutes per week of recreational physical activity; the CAPE (Children's Assessment of Participation and Enjoyment); the ANT (Amsterdam Neuropsychological Tasks); the achievement of individual treatment goals (Goal Attainment Scaling); and quality-of-life (PedsQL; Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory). Statistical analyses included paired t-tests or Wilcoxon-Signed-Rank tests.


RESULTS
Fifty patients were included (31 boys and 19 girls; mean age 17.1 years (SD = 4.4)), of whom 45 (90%) completed the study. Significant changes of the amount of physical activity, speed of information processing, attention, response inhibition and visual-motor coordination (p < 0.05) were seen after 12 weeks, whereas there were no differences in CAPE or PedsQL scores. Two-thirds of the patients reported an improvement of the main treatment goal.


CONCLUSIONS
This study supports the potential benefits of gaming in children and youth with ABI.
Sophia Rehabilitation, The Hague, The Netherlands. a.dekloet@sophiarevalidatie.nl
A J
AJ
de Kloet
M A M
MA
Berger
I M A J
IM
Verhoeven
K
K
van Stein Callenfels
T P M Vliet
TP
Vlieland
D000124:Achievement; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001930:Brain Injuries / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009043:Motor Activity; D010349:Patient Compliance; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011597:Psychomotor Performance; D011788:Quality of Life; D013813:Therapy, Computer-Assisted / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D018910:Video Games; D055815:Young Adult