A Rutgers-based study, recently published in the IEEE Transactions on Information Technology in Biomedicine journal, has shown that an at-home treatment regimen involving video games can improve hand function in teenagers with cerebral palsy.
The pilot study, involving only three teenage participants, combined a Sony Playstation 3 console and a commercial gaming glove with their custom-made games. Rutgers engineers created custom game and exercise software aimed at improving hand speed and range of motion.
The system enhanced the participants’ abilities to perform a range of daily personal and household activities.
After three months of therapy, two study participants were able to lift heavy objects, a task they were unable to accomplish before the trial. Participants showed varying improvement in activities of daily living including brushing teeth, shampooing, dressing and opening heavy doors.
The study was the result of a collaboration between engineers at Rutgers University’s Tele-Rehabilitation Institute and clinicians at the Indiana University School of Medicine.
In addition to game and exercise software, the apparatus features an online telerehabilitation platform that allowed researchers to oversee participants’ routines and evaluate their recovery of motor function.
Here’s a link to the full article (requires a subscription to the journal).
Here’s a video from the Rutgers website: