Wii Works in Treatment with Elderly Patients

Wii Works in Treatment with Elderly Patients

Research shows the Wii gaming console is as efficient as conventional physiotherapy in helping to deal with mobility problems.

THE NINTENDO Wii console has proved to be as efficient as conventional physiotherapy in helping elderly patients deal with severe mobility problems. A pilot study, carried out at Tallaght hospital, involved a group of elderly people in their late 70s and early 80s. The participants used to Wii to mimic actions such as throwing a punch in boxing or taking a swing of a golf club as part of the computer game. The game is already extensively used in get-fit classes. Another control group used conventional exercises. The results from both groups were similar demonstrating the Wii could be used to support current physiotherapy.

All the patients involved were impaired as a result of strokes, arthritis or weakness of muscles after a severe illness. The project was carried out in conjunction with Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and its results were presented to the European Union Geriatric Medicine Society conference which took place in the new Convention Centre Dublin (CCD) recently.

Prof Desmond O'Neill, one of the organisers of the conference and Consultant Geriatrician in Tallaght Hospital said, “the results are very encouraging. The Wii training produced similar results to standard physiotherapy. This is a very positive beginning and a good starting point for further investigation. The Wii could be used as an "extra arm of therapy" and larger studies of the technology are planned.”

Anne-Marie Scanlon, a chartered physiotherapist at Tallaght hospital, who supervised the research project, from August 2009 to January 2010, said that, “some of the patients were reluctant at first, they thought they might look silly, but they soon got used to it and really enjoyed it”. “While not suitable for every patient our results demonstrate that the Wii could be used as an additional support to traditional physiotherapy. We found that the people showed an improvement in balance and mobility, and we were particularly interested in the balance aspect. The other positive is that the exercise can be very sociable, the patient’s family can also train with the patient at home if they wish.”

Two other projects being carried out in Tallaght Hospital were also presented at the European Union Geriatric Medicine Society conference. They also highlighted the use of modern technology in the care of elderly people. One involved a project using You Tube for reminiscence therapy in dementia. The other is a project involving telemedicine which allows patients at four Irish hospitals to access a specialist stroke physician at evenings and weekends through a remote robot called Robo-Doc. The Wii research was carried out in conjunction with the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI).