The contribution of Nintendo series in the field of health: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND

was originally designed as a health and fitness interactive training experience for the general public. There are, however, many examples of being utilized in clinical settings. This article aims to identify the contribution of in the field of health promotion and rehabilitation by: (1) identifying the health-related domains for which the series has been tested, (2) clarifying the effect of in those identified health-related domains and (3) quantifying this effect.

METHOD

A systematic literature review was undertaken. The MEDLINE database and published content were explored using the search term "Wii-Fit." Occurrences resulting from manual searches on Google and material suggested by experts in the field were also considered. Included articles were required to have measurements from activities for at least one relevant health indicator. The effect of interventions was assessed using meta-analyses for the following outcomes: activity-specific balance confidence score, Berg balance score (BBC) and time-up-and-go test (TUG).

FINDINGS

A total of 115 articles highlighted that the has been tested in numerous healthy and pathological populations. Out of these, only a few intervention studies have focused on the prevention of chronic diseases. A large proportion of the studies focus on balance training ( = 55). This systematic review highlights several potential benefits of interventions and these positive observations are supported by meta-analyses data ( = 25). For example, the BBC and the TUG respond to a similar extend to interventions compared with traditional training.

CONCLUSION

has the potential to be used as a rehabilitation tool in different clinical situations. However, the current literature includes relatively few randomized controlled trials in each population. Further research is therefore required.