This might be just a Wii bit of a stretch, but criminals in the top security Broadmoor Hospital (home to Britain's most evil criminals) has installed 22 game consoles, plasma TV, PlayStation adn Xboxes! 

If you are interested in learning more about this program - you can try to reach the authors Jamie Pyatt and Rob Singh at j.pyatt@the-sun.co.uk

What do you think?  Should prisons purchase these types of games for use in their facilities?  Should prisoners be allowed to "PLAY"???

Do you know someone who is disabled?  Well, most likely you do since more than 15% of Americans are disabled.  Recently a survey company conducted a study for PopCap games and found that 20% of all gamers are disabled!  More amazingly, more than 2/3 reported their disability to be moderate or severe!

So game industry, when are you going to take the disabled community seriously?  Guess what, according to this survey- disabled gamers play more frequently, for more hours per week and for longer periods of time per session. 

A few more specifics: 

54% said they were moderately disabled

46% have physical disabilities, 61% of whom were over 50 years old

52% of those reporting a developmental disability were under 18 years old.

69% were female,

35% needed help taking the survey!

The most common type of disabilities reported were: 

 Physical: Rheumatoid Arthritis/Osteoarthritis (14%); Fibromyalgia (11%); Multiple Sclerosis (7%). 
 Mental: Moderate/Severe Depression (41%); Bipolar Disorder (16%); Anxiety Disorder (15%). 
 Developmental/Learning: ADD/ADHD (46%); Autism (15%); Dyslexia (11%). 

So, why do they play games? Well it sorta depends on what type of disability you have- stress relief (81%), mood lifting (69%), distraction from issues related to disability (66%), improved concentration (59%) and mental workouts (58%).
 

Oh, and one more kinda cool finding:  11% said that a "physician, psychiatrist, physical therapist or other medical professional had prescribed or recommended playing casual games as part of the treatment" for their disability.

You can read the results of the survye from Information Solutions Group (ISG) here: 

www.infosolutionsgroup.com/pdfs/disabled_gamers.pdf

So this is pretty cool- some pretty smart researchers at the Univ of Melbourne and Dept of Physiotherapy, Singapore General Hospital have found that the Wii Fit is just about as good in measuring balance as super expensive force platforms.  This is exciting because our very own Abel Rendon is trying to do the exact same thing- lets hope he finds some more interesting tidbits about the Wii!!!!

Ross A. Clark Adam L. Bryant, Yonghao Pua, Paul McCrory, Kim Bennell and Michael Hunt Validity and reliability of the Nintendo Wii Balance Board for assessment of standing balanc, Gait and Posture, Jan 2010.

Lets use this blog post to collect news about injuries sustained as a result of playing with the wii or other video games

Here is an older post from Feb 2009:  www.engadget.com/2008/02/09/wii-rehab-wiihab-the-cycle-is-now-complete/

Once again, the Wii is making headlines!  This time its in the Forest City Summit and Britt News Tribune (I'm even exactly sure where that is)...

Basically the editor features a local continuing care facility, Westview.  She interviews a restorative therapist, Joey Units about how they are using the Wii in their facility. 

After a few weeks of "getting used" to the new technology, now about 15 residents play Wii daily!

Units suggests that some of the benefits of the Wii include improved range of motion, cardio work out, and helps to release endorphins (which he says, helps you stay happy!).  Additionally, the players are loosing weight- one resident lost 30 lbs last year.

You can read the whole article here:  www.forestcitysummit.com/articles/2010/01/13/britt_news/01wii.txt

 This blog will serve as journal locator for all articles that involve the EyeToy! 

In physical therapy, R.I.C.E. has typically meant Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation, but now, it might mean Stroke Rehab!  Thanks to an NSF grant, Professors O'Malley and Byrne at Rice University are study hand movements to better understand cognitive modeling of human motor skill acquisition.  They will start exploring a bunch of Wii games and see how folks learn! 

Striatal Volume Predicts Level of Video Game SkillAcquisition

Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh, Florida State University, University of Illinois, and MIT's Brain and Cognitive Sciences & McGovern Institute for Brain Research, have published an article discussing individual differences in performance and learning in folks who play video games.  They specifically studied the brains memory and learning centers (striatum and hippocampus).  They found that there were diffeneces in the striatum (learning centers).  At this stage of research, the authors can only show a correlation- but it is exciting non-the-less! 

Some take home messages from the article are

1)  variable learning was associated with higher overall performance

2)  Ventral striatal volumes were predictive of early stage learning- highlighting the importance of limbic circuits related to the striatal region in reinforcement-related processes.  This region contributes to motivational and affective processing (reward and motivation)  (in other words...games gotta grab you from the beginning!!!- so we need more games for all types of people!

3) Dorsal striatal volumes were predicitive of early and later stage learning.  The dorsal striatum is important for motor and associative processing such as cognitive felxibility.

You might be asking yourself- what the heck is making this brain region larger?  Well, in a word - "not sure"...but the authors suggest it might be greater dendritic or axonal arborizations, more synaptic connections, greater synaptic plasticity, more neurons, more active neurons or great vascularization (Schubert et al 2009).

This article represents early evidence that we should continue exploring how video games change our brain!!! 

Kirk I. Erickson, Walter R. Boot, Chandramallika Basak, Mark B. Neider, Ruchika S. Prakash, Michelle W. Voss, Ann M. Graybiel5,6, Daniel J. Simons3,4, Monica Fabiani3,4, Gabriele Gratton3,4 and Arthur F. Kramer3,4

Department of Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA, 2Department of Psychology, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306, USA, 3Department of Psychology, University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, IL 61820, USA, Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois, Urbana, IL 61801, USA, 5McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA and 6Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA Address correspondence to Kirk I. Erickson. Email: kiericks@pitt.edu.

Cerebral Cortex (2010) Vol20, N1
 

To contact Arthur Kramer, call 217- 493-9785; e-mail akramer@cyrus.psych.uiuc.edu.
To reach Kirk Erickson, call 412-624-4533; kiericks@pitt.edu. To reach Ann Graybiel, e-mail graybiel@mit.edu. The paper, “Striatal Volume Predicts Level of Video Game SkillAcquisition,” is available at:  http://www.news.illinois.edu/WebsandThumbs/Kramer,Art/01_10bhp293.pdf

Here is a pic of Art Kramer from the University of Pittsburgh.

Rehabilitation sucks- bottom line!  But, using video games might make it just a Wii bit more palitable!  Many Nursing Homes around the country are using the Wii to help their residents improve range of motion, strength, cardiovascular fitness, weight loss and best of all- increase their social engagement!  It does not matter if you are in a wheel chair or standing, many people enjoy playing these video games! I will use this blog to track the articles that I find related to the use of the Wii or EyeToy in long term care facilities! 

Check back when ever you wish!!!

Jan 20, 2010  www.forestcitysummit.com/articles/2010/01/13/britt_news/01wii.txt

December 9, 2008- Wii bit of fun at Rice University has serious intent  - www.rice.edu/nationalmedia/news2008-12-09-wii.shtml (added by James Burke)

June 15, 2009- Video games boost patient rehabilitation  - www.boston.com/news/health/articles/2009/06/15/video_games_boost_patient_rehabilitation/ (added by James Burke)

June 12, 2008- Survey: 'Games more beneficial to disabled'  - www.digitalspy.co.uk/gaming/news/a99539/survey-games-more-beneficial-to-disabled.html (added by James Burke)

February 9, 2008- Wii + rehab = Wiihab, the cycle is now complete  - www.engadget.com/2008/02/09/wii-rehab-wiihab-the-cycle-is-now-complete/ (added by James Burke)

April, 2007- Wii-hab assigned to Canadian Patients  www.slipperybrick.com/2007/05/wii-rehab-patients/  (added by James Burke)

Doctors and clinicians at New York Presbyterian Hospital/Weil Cornell Medical Center are using the Wii to help individuals with burns regain function.  Our very own Sam Yohannan PT is an expert in using video games for burn survivors.  Sam is conducting a year long study exploring the use of the Wii following burns and for burn rehabilitation. Sam will be assisting with the Games For Health Conference Rehab Day in Boston this May.  Do any of you use off-the-shelf devices for burn care and intervention?  If so, why don't you share some ideas and videos here so we can all learn about way to use video games for rehabilitation following burns! 

www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local-beat/Burn-Patients-Slice-and-Dice-their-Way-to-Recovery-72173602.html

Thanks so much for your input!

The really forward thinking group at 7128 games have been developing games for rehab and learning games for a LONG time!  Here is a link to all of their games for folks who are blind!  www.7128.com/purchasespecialoffers.html

The Perceptions GameBook for Windows and FIVE games cost only $20 from now until February 2010. That's $5 off the regular price.

All of their games work with JAWS and self-voice!

Here is a cool website that provides the color blind spectrun.  www.7128.com/resources/resources_color_blind.html

These colors help non-color blind designers select colors that those with color-blindness can see and differentiate from other colors! 

So, why not just use these colors instead of other colors...remember- Universal Design!!!!

Have you ever thought it would be really cool if you could play a game instead of using that damn insintive spirometer?  How many times per hour are you supposed to watch that blue ball go up and down?  Well friends, there is hope!  There are a few cool breathing games/apps available.  The iPhone has a few games that require you to breath to play an instrument (insert iphone games here)

Now, Xyxio has new software called SensaWaft in which users blow a mouse cursor across the screen - "gengle puffs control computers, phones, game consoles, in-vehicle systems etc.....as of yet, this technology is not being used in video games, but IT SHOULD!  (Check out the video under the "video" part of this website.

Does anyone want to contact Xyxio to see if they want to partner in the development of breathing games for rehabilitation?   Folks who are fresh from surgery, over coming pneumonia, or have chronic COPD might really enjoy such a game! 

Have you ever gone somewhere and been really impressed by thier accessible accomodations?  Why isn't universal design just a given?  Well until universal design is UNIVERSALLY adopted, there is the accessibility Mapr (beta).  Ok, I know sometimes i can live in a hole and don't realize things are happening and then emerge from my hole only to find some really cool things going on...well this is one cool site!  accessibilitymapr.com/

This website contains user generated content of all things accessible.  So- we can all contribute to this site...when we go someplace we can upload the accessibility information on to this site...it will come in quite handy for folks who are disabled and travel. It will open up opportunities to visit places otherwise not visited!

This is AWESOME!!! 

"Disability is not a 'brave struggle' or 'courage in the face of adversity'...disability is an art. It's an ingenious way to live." Neil Marcus

Found on B-tch on Wheels (the world from a twenty something, vegetarian disabled Canadian woman's point of view).....

Sheryl Flynn PT, PhD, Belinda Lange Physio PhD, and Judy Deutsch PT, PhD are teaching a continuing education pre-conference at this years American Physical Therapy Asociation Combined Sections Meeting in San Deigo!  The intended audience is physical therapists, physical therapy assistants and students!  If you are anyone you know, would like to register, please go to www.apta.org/AM/Template.cfm

The conference will cover the Nintendo Wii, Sony EyeToy, Dance Dance Revolution.  We will discuss evidence supporting video games for rehabilitation and its neuroplastic underpinnings.  Ample opportunity for practice and patient problems will be provided. 

Feel free to contact sheryl at sherylflynn@yahoo.com with any questions.

On Jan 15th 2010, The Melbourne Newsroom featured an article about the Wii Fit and Balance!  Dr. Ross Clark of the Department of Physiotherapy at the University of Melbourne recently published a paper in the International Journal of Gait and Posture showing that the information obtained from the Wii Fit is comparable to the information obtained from $20,000 force plates and balance equipment for assessing balance.  He further suggests that using the Nintendo Wii Fit balance board could help diagnose early stages of disease processes such as Parkinson's disease. 

Are any other folks doing research with the Wii Fit and Balance Assessemnt?  I know of a few folks here state side:  Abel Rendon PT is working on a comparison of Wii Fit and more expensive balance measures.  Is anyone else doing it?

 newsroom.melbourne.edu/news/n-230

BrainBike, the brain child (get it) of Dr. Stephane Bergeron, MD and lots of other really smart brainy folks!!! It touts to improve your memory, concentration, multitasking and others cool stuff that you should work on to make your brain muscle remain strong!  Basically the Brainbike provides a computer screen with which you engage in 22 different brain activities.  The BrainBike, which comes from non other than Ed Kasanders from motion fitness and is powered by non other than our very own Richard Coshott's patented Gamercise technology,!  I can't wait to try it...has any tried it?

check it out at 

www.thebrainbike.com/

Dragon Dictation (created by Nuance) has created easy to use voice recognition iPhone app. It works with the iPd touch and iPhone (2nd generation).  You can also update twitter with it! It is a convenient voice-to-text transcription tha can be sent via SMS, email or any app on your iPhone using clipboard.  One cool feature is that they will upload your phone book names so that when you dictate using someones name it will choose from your list of names to improve accuracy!

I just tried it and it seems to work quite well.  The first text I tried, did not work out very well, so I spoke slower and inunicated a bit more and it was perfect.  You are still required to type in the name of the person you want to text or email to.  You also must double tap to insert the dictated text into the space.  So, for short messages it might not save you many taps, but for longer ones it seems it would work very well!  According to their website, it is up to 5 times faster than typing!

Has anyone else used this?  What do you think???

Check the Apple apps store for this product.

Hey folks- I might be last century, but I just discovered a BBC site called "Ouch Its a disability thing!".  Wow, what a great site.  They feature Disability Bitch, New Year- New Start, Messy Eaters, Radio Talk, Top Ten, Disability News etc..really sweet site!  Check it out! www.bbc.co.uk/ouch/