title: Effect of Wii-intervention on balance of children with poor motor performance.
abstract: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of training with the Wii-balance board on balance and balance-related skills of children with poor motor performance. Twenty-nine children (23 boys, 6 girls; aged 7-12 years) participated in this study and were randomly assigned to an experimental and control group. All children scored below the 16th percentile on a standardized test of motor ability and balance skills (Movement Assessment Battery for children (M-ABC-2)). Before and after a six-week Wii-intervention (M=8h, 22 min, SD=53 min), the balance skills of the experimental group and control group were measured with the M-ABC-2 and the Bruininks-Oseretsky test of motor proficiency (BOT-2). Both groups improved on all tests. The M-ABC-2 and the BOT-2 total balance-scores of the experimental group improved significantly from pre to post intervention, whereas those of the control group showed no significant progress. This resulted in significant interaction-effects, favoring the experimental children. No transfer-effects of the intervention on balance-related skills were demonstrated. Our findings showed that the Wii-balance board is an effective intervention for children with poor balance control. Further development and investigation of the intervention could be directed toward the implementation of the newly acquired balance-skills in daily life.
authors.affiliation: School of Sportstudies, Hanze University Groningen, Zernikeplein 17, 9747 AS Groningen, The Netherlands. r.mombarg@rug.nl
authors.forename: Remo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Mombarg
authors.forename: Dorothee
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Jelsma
authors.forename: Esther
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Hartman
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009048:Motor Skills / Q000502:physiology*; D019957:Motor Skills Disorders / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D009068:Movement / Q000502:physiology; D004856:Postural Balance / Q000502:physiology*; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D018910:Video Games
keywords: BOT-2; Balance; Bruininks–Oseretsky test of motor proficiency-two; Children; M-ABC-2; Motor performance; Movement-Assessment Battery for children-two; Wii; Wii-balance board with Nintendo-Wii-fit plus® software; Wii-intervention