EDKP 447

Pros & Cons of the Intervention

There are many pros presented by this intervention. Although it may seem that the initial price of buying a Nintendo Wii with the Balance Board is expensive, it is a one-time cost when compared to PT and OT. It is also very accessible; the participant would not be required to drive to their session or plan their day around an appointment. Finally, most participants that have used the Wii Fit game as an intervention have benefited from it (Zwicker et al, 2015). Motivation is a major factor in an individual’s willingness to improve, thus, individuals are more likely to perform at their highest capacity if they are enjoying themselves.

The games included in this intervention are fairly risk free; however, the concern is that there is no professional supervision to ensure that all exercises are being performed safely and correctly. If the participant is performing an incorrect movement, it can easily go unnoticed in the eyes of someone who is untrained such as a parent or sibling. Thus, it can be promoting bad habits. It is therefore encouraged that the first two weeks are supervised by a trained kinesiologist. Active guidance will be used by the kinesiologist in order to preserve the feel of the motions. Further, demonstration and verbal instruction will be used in order for the individual to fully grasp the fundamentals of the game.

The children participating in the intervention are between the ages of 6 to 12, wherein video games may already be a major part of their lives. However, any individual with DCD can benefit as it is easy to tailor to their specific needs. Whether they have a higher symptom severity or a lower one, the game’s difficulty can be modified. 

Since the intervention is to be practiced frequently, DCD children are expected to increase their ability to integrate exteroceptive and interoceptive feedback as well as decrease their reaction time (RT) in order to improve static balance. An increased practice can allow the child to predict earlier, anticipate better and to integrate information from their three sensory systems with more ease. This will in turn affect the time needed to respond to situations that perturb their static balance in the real world, by decreasing their RT or by stopping the RT from increasing. 

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