JMIR Serious Games

Sarcopenia in older adults is associated with reduced muscle mass and function, leading to frailty, increased fall risk, and decreased quality of life. Mixed reality (MR)-based interventions have emerged as promising tools to enhance physical therapy engagement and effectiveness through immersive, interactive environments.

Suicide is a leading cause of preventable death worldwide. Nurses play a critical role in suicide prevention, yet face significant obstacles. Improving the evaluation and management of patients at risk of suicide requires innovative training techniques that safely and effectively enhance nursing students’ skills, knowledge, and confidence. Virtual simulation (VS) based training can be particularly effective because it allows interaction with patients without the risk of causing harm.

Young people feel increasingly anxious and sad nowadays. Engaging with works of art and entertainment, such as playing open-world games or watching Studio Ghibli films, can be more than just a pastime. However, the extent to which, if at all, open-world games and feelings of nostalgia affect overall happiness in life remains unclear.

Specific learning disorder in reading (SLD reading), commonly named dyslexia, is a neurodevelopmental condition affecting reading. Current best practice recommendations for SLD reading emphasize the necessity of including graphophonological interventions. The serious game Mila-Learn, which is based on rhythm training, showed promising results in a prior randomized trial. However, it lacked a component of graphophonological training.

Frailty is a geriatric syndrome associated with increased risk of falls, hospitalization, and reduced quality of life. Traditional exercises may be unsuitable for frail older adults due to mobility issues and accessibility barriers. Virtual reality (VR) offers an engaging, home-based alternative by providing interactive training with real-time feedback. VR interventions have shown potential benefits for improving balance, strength, and mobility.

Virtual reality (VR) interventions are emerging as promising non-pharmacological strategies for people with dementia, aiming to prevent cognitive decline, reduce behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD), and alleviate caregiver burden. Although some studies have reported beneficial effects, findings remain inconsistent, and little is known about the duration and sustainability of these effects, particularly in real-world care settings.

Heart failure (HF) is a growing global health concern, and adherence to early cardiac rehabilitation (CR) remains suboptimal. Exergaming is a promising alternative to conventional exercise programs for patients with HF. However, existing research has limitations, and the integration of exergaming into clinical practice remains challenging. Most notably, current studies often rely on commercially available systems that are not tailored to HF patients’ specific needs, lack long-term adherence strategies, and have limited evaluation in the initial phases of cardiac rehabilitation.

Aging can bring upon several effects that can hinder one's quality of life. One of the effects is the decline in one's ability to perform activities of daily living (ADLs), which is caused by the loss of hand function due to aging. To mitigate this, several virtual reality (VR)-based training/rehabilitation systems that utilize hand tracking were developed. Although these systems are effective, immersive and can promote motivation, they are mostly limited to providing range of motion exercises. The addition of a force control component to the hand tracking of these systems could make them even more effective at improving/restoring hand function, as the majority of ADLs require a degree of force control.

Accumulating evidence and medical guidelines recommend high-dose neurorehabilitation for recovery after stroke. The reality, however, is that most patients receive a fraction of this dose, with therapist availability and costs of delivery being major implementational barriers.

Basketball exists as a team-based sport played on a court involving intense physical demands because players need continuous movement between offensive and defensive zones.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a rapidly growing neurological condition worldwide. While physiotherapy and exercise are effective interventions, the addition of motivational aspects that improve adherence could be beneficial for people with PD. Incorporating technological devices into motor rehabilitation, coupled with gamification elements, could enhance the relevance of rehabilitation and alleviate motor symptoms.

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly affected health care professionals, especially nurses, who have experienced elevated levels of stress, burnout, and physical health challenges. In the postpandemic era, supporting their well-being is crucial. Gamification, which is the application of game design elements in nongame contexts, has emerged as a promising strategy to promote engagement in health behaviors. This study explores the use of a gamified mobile app to support self-health management among nurses recovering from the COVID-19 experience.