Effects of Kinect exergames on balance training among community older adults

Abstract

Background: Recent years have witnessed wide applications of exergames to balance training among the older adults. However, research concerning balance training with the use of Kinect for Xbox has remained scarce. While previous studies have shown the positive effects of exergames on improving balance and preventing falling among the older adults, there has been a paucity of empirical evidence supporting the superiority of Kinect exercise to conventional exercise over balance training among the older adults. Therefore, this study aimed to compare the feasibility, safety, and effectiveness of Kinect exercise against conventional exercise over balance training among the community older adults. Method: A total of 20 participants were randomly assigned to the Kinect Exercise Group ( N = 10) or the Conventional Exercise Group ( N = 10) for a 5-week balance training (45 minutes a time, 2 times a week). Assessor blinding was employed to assess the participants’ performance before and after the treatment, including 30-Second Chair Stand Test (30-sec CST), Timed Up and Go (TUG), Functional Reach Test (FRT), and One-Leg Stance Test (OLST) respectively with eyes open and closed. Subjective feeling of the intensity of pain and side effects were recorded throughout the investigation period. Nonparametric statistics was used for data analysis. Results: Within-group comparison between the pre-test and post-test indicated that significant differences existed in all of the 5 tests (30-sec CST, TUG, FRT, OLST with eyes open, and OLST with eyes closed) in the Kinect exercise group. To the Conventional exercise group, however, significant differences were only observed in 30-sec CST, FRT and OLST with eyes open. With regard to between-group comparison, significant differences were only found in FRT. Conclusion: Such results indicated that both treatments were helpful in improving the participants’ balance performance, that Kinect exercise was more effective in terms of overall balance ability, and that Kinect exercise was particularly beneficial to functional reach enhancement in comparison with traditional exercise. Kinect exercise could be a feasible, safe, and effective alternative for dynamic balance training among older adults.

Comparison between the effects of exergame intervention and traditional physical training on improving balance and fall prevention in healthy older adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis

“…All the 20 studies were randomized control trials. Twelve studies used the two-arm design, including one intervention arm and one control arm [ 4 , 21 , 23 , 29 , 30 , 32 – 38 ]. Six studies used a three-arm design, of which four included two intervention arms and one control arm [ 22 , 28 , 39 , 40 ], and two included one intervention arm and two control arms [ 31 , 41 ].…”

“…The other six studies which assessed falls efficacy only had the assessments at baseline and immediately following the intervention [ 4 , 21 , 32 , 37 , 41 , 42 ]. Two studies had the immediately post-intervention assessment and one additional follow-up assessment (i.e., 1-year follow-up and 4-week follow-up, respectively) to measure the balance control [ 33 , 39 ], and the other 16 studies only implemented an immediately post-intervention assessment [ 4 , 21 – 23 , 28 – 32 , 35 , 36 , 38 , 40 – 43 ].…”

Effect of virtual reality exercises on balance and fall in elderly people with fall risk: a randomized controlled trial

“…Moreover, Park et al [ 37 ] indicated that simulated exercises by smart Xbox Kinect could improve the TUG test among people with hemiplegia. Yang et al [ 45 ] also stated that VR exercises had impacts similar to those of real exercises, and might enhance balance. They concluded that virtual exercises could be a suitable substitute for real training.…”

An Interactive Physical-Cognitive Game-Based Training System Using Kinect for Older Adults: Development and Usability Study

“…In addition, the Microsoft Kinect motion sensor is an accurate input device; thus, it allows precise tracking and real-time feedback of user performance [46]. The Microsoft Kinect sensor is proposed to be a feasible and effective tool for training concurrent physical and cognitive components in older adults, with the aim of reducing the intrinsic causes (ie, physical and cognitive) of falls [47][48][49][50][51].…”