“It’s not the perfect system, but can be
considered as an option to provide basic objective information about balance,”
said Hunt, whose previous research includes examining concussion recovery
patterns among high school students in several states.
“It’s another tool to have
in our toolkit because determining when an athlete has recovered can be
subjective,” Hunt admits.
“Athletes
are more likely to engage with a video game than to take another boring
concussion test or admit they are still hurt,” said Hunt. “We currently base
much of our assessment on an athlete telling us about their symptoms. The video
game allows us to broadly analyze center of gravity, to help us be more
objective.”
Athletes
participate in three different yoga poses as demonstrated on the Wii Fit game
and are given a score which determines how well the athlete maintained center
of balance. Baseline testing provides athletic trainers with an idea of how an
athlete normally functions. If an athlete suffers a head injury at a later
date, the athletic trainer can assess the balance of the athlete compared to
their normal ability.
According
to Hunt, an athletic trainer must obtain the baseline measures to compare the
athlete to themselves because everyone performs differently.
Preliminary
data suggests a moderate correlation to current methods used in concussion
assessment, ranging from 0.75-0.82, depending on the stance.
“Additional
studies need to be performed to determine the long-term reliability of the
measures and other factors associated with test scores, such as fatigue,” said
Hunt.
This
is just the beginning of studies using alternative measures of balance
assessment like the Wii Fit for concussion management. The National Collegiate Athletic
Association concussion guidelines
support using the video game as a postural assessment tool. It is not yet
approved as a medical device by the Food and Drug Administration.
# # #
Contact: Gina Bericchia,
Medical Center Public Affairs & Media Relations, 614-293-3737, Gina.Bericchia@osumc.edu
