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THE HEALING POWER OF Wii -- Interactive gaming is helping

injured vets at Walter Reed on the road to recovery.

 

Interactive Wii glove.

 

For a previous story on the therapeutic use of video games, click here... http://www.vawatchdog.org/07/
nf07/nfMAY07/nf052807-5.htm

For more on the use of virtual realty games in the treatment of PTSD, use the VA Watchdog search engine...click here...
http://www.yourvabenefits.org/ses
search.php?q=virtual+reality&op=ph

Today's story here... http://www.pcmag.
com/article2/0,1759,2170784,00.asp

Story below:

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The Healing Power of Wii

Interactive gaming is helping injured vets on the road to recovery.

By Lisa Zyga

Some people think of video games as an escape from reality.

But for injured soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., they are providing a return to the real world in the form of physical therapy.

"Wii games like tennis or boxing can help increase range of motion, and patients enjoy them much more than doing ten repetitions of an exercise," says Lieutenant Colonel Stephanie Daugherty, chief of occupational therapy at Walter Reed. "We also have an Xbox for finger range of motion, and Dance Dance Revolution, which helps with balance and sequencing."

To gauge patients' improvement, the games are connected to medical equipment, such as a clinical biometric machine manufactured by Biometrics Ltd.

The machine measures wrist strength for skiing games and hand motion (including twisting and turning) for basketball games.

The games can also help patients with basic motor skills and assist in relearning everyday tasks, such as writing, throwing a ball, or even driving a car.

As of July 10, Walter Reed has treated nearly 6,000 patients using the games as part of the physical therapy regimen, including 478 amputees.

Though the soldiers are all returning to civilian life much different from how they left it, regaining vital physical skills makes the transition much easier.

"In all these examples, video games have helped to give a sense of normalcy back to the soldiers," Daugherty says. "For individuals without legs and who also may have arm injuries, when we put them in front of a game controller, they're not thinking about exercises or anything else. They're just playing against each other."

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Larry Scott  --