The effect of implementing gamification during rehabilitation on functional outcome: a systematic review

Abstract

This systematic review can be situated in the research domain ‘technology in rehabilitation’. The research was performed in cooperation with Materialise, a Belgian company exploring the frontiers of technology in different fields including medicine. Together, it was decided to explore different types of exergames currently available and which of them have been proven effective in comparison to conventional rehabilitation.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of exergames on functional outcome. The research was performed by two Hasselt University students Hanne Nelis and Martijn Weustenraad under supervision of Dr. Fien Burg and Prof. Dr. Pieter Meyns. Based on this systematic review, a fictional research protocol was developed that could potentially shed more light into a topic that has currently only been investigated in one randomized controlled trial (RCT), the use of a Nintendo Wii Balance Board in a population following an anterior cruciate ligament injury.