Effect of virtual reality therapy, combined with physiotherapy for improving motor proficiency in individuals with Down syndrome: A systematic review.
Jessica Stander, Jennifer C du Preez, Chantel Kritzinger and 5 others
PMID 34192206WHAT IT FOUND
Adding Nintendo Wii exercise to standard physiotherapy or occupational therapy did not show overall better motor proficiency in Down syndrome.
Agility improved in some studies, but balance, strength and coordination were mixed or inconclusive.
Key findings
01The review did not find evidence that Nintendo Wii therapy combined with physiotherapy or occupational therapy improves motor proficiency overall.
02Agility outcomes favoured experimental groups that received Nintendo Wii games, alone or combined with physiotherapy or occupational therapy, in some included studies.
03Balance outcomes were inconsistent across the included studies.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
Only seven studies were included, and they varied too much in participants, games, therapy dose and follow-up to combine statistically. Most studies had small samples, so the results may be unstable. Participants and therapists were not blinded in any of the six experimental studies, which can affect effort and assessment. The included studies did not describe the exact games, intensity or home exercise details well enough to repeat the intervention. The review included only English-language published studies, so relevant evidence in other languages or unpublished trials may be missing. The age range was 6 to 60 years, making it hard to apply the findings to one specific age group.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that Nintendo Wii therapy alone improves motor proficiency in Down syndrome. The review did not find overall evidence favouring it, and the studies combined Wii games with standard physiotherapy or occupational therapy, so the contribution of the Wii games alone cannot be separated.