The interconnection of video games and health is becoming deeper as a recent study adds another health use for video games.
A team of researchers, led by Dr. Luca Prosperini, has found a use for the Wii Balance Board for patients with multiple sclerosis.
According to the study, published in Radiology, the board could help people with MS reduce their risk of accidental falls by creating favorable changes in balance and movement in the brain.
Using the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technique called diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), researchers were able to study the changes in the brains of 27 MS patients and 15 normal patients over the course of 12 weeks using the Wii balance board. DTI allows researchers to look at white matter tracts throughout the brain and body.
MS is an autoimmune disease in which the body's immune system attacks the protective sheath around the nerve fibers. This can cause issues in balance and movement. Using the Wii balance board, MS patients shift their weight back and forth using games and practicing balance and movement.
Previous research shows that the balance board is an effective form of rehabilitation, but little research has been done about what is happening physiologically in terms of balance and movement.
In the scans, researchers found significant changes in the nerve tracts important for balance and movement. Researchers attribute this to neural plasticity, or the ability of the brain to adapt to become more efficient.
"The most important finding in this study is that a task-oriented and repetitive training aimed at managing a specific symptom is highly effective and induces brain plasticity," Prosperini said. "More specifically, the improvements promoted by the Wii balance board can reduce the risk of accidental falls in patients with MS, thereby reducing the risk of fall-related comorbidities like trauma and fractures."
However, the improvements disappeared after patients discontinued the training protocol providing support that like all forms of exercise, this training should be ongoing.
Prosperini warned, however, that patients with MS should only begin using the Wii balance board as a form of exercise under supervision because there is a risk that the patients could hurt themselves or they could use the board improperly.
There are also a variety of other techniques to help with balance such as canes and orthotic devices. Some patients also try electrical muscle stimulation to control their muscles.
