Exergame technology and interactive interventions for elderly fall prevention: A systematic literature review.
Training balance and promoting physical activities in the elderly can contribute to fall-prevention. Due to the low adherence of conventional physical therapy, fall interventions through exergame technologies are emerging. The purpose of this review study is to synthesize the available research reported on exergame technology and interactive interventions for fall prevention in the older population. Twenty-five relevant papers retrieved from five major databases were critically reviewed and analyzed. Results showed that the most common exergaming device for fall intervention was Nintendo Wii, followed by Xbox Kinect. Even though the exergame intervention protocols and outcome measures for assessing intervention effectiveness varied, the accumulated evidences revealed that exergame interventions improved physical or cognitive functions in the elderly. However, it remains inconclusive whether or not the exergame-based intervention for the elderly fall prevention is superior to conventional physical therapy and the effect mechanism of the exergaming on elderly's balance ability is still unclear.
Department of Occupational & Environmental Safety & Health, University of Wisconsin - Whitewater, Whitewater, WI, USA.
Sang D
SD
Choi
Human Factors and Ergonomics Laboratory, Department of Industrial & Systems Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Yuseong, South Korea; Department of Safety Engineering, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, China.
Liangjie
L
Guo
Department of Human & Systems Engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST), Ulsan, South Korea.
Donghun
D
Kang
Human Factors and Ergonomics Laboratory, Department of Industrial & Systems Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Yuseong, South Korea. Electronic address: shupingx@kaist.ac.kr.
Shuping
S
Xiong
D000058:Accidental Falls / Q000517:prevention & control*; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005081:Exercise Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D018910:Video Games
Ageing; Exergame technology; Fall prevention