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Assessment of the Feasibility of the Nintendo Wii Balance Board as an Intervention Method For Balance Rehabilitation with Lower-limb Amputees

Michel Tousignant, Emilie-Sarah Milton-McSween, Karine Michaud, Simon Jolin, Simon Bisson-Petit, Richard Saba, Emilie Limage-Couture, Marie- Eve Luc and Marianne Labbé

Lower-limb amputations have a major impact on balance and functional skills, which can be limited by rehabilitation. The Wii Balance Board (WBB) with its Wii Fit game (WFg) is often used in clinical settings with lowerlimb amputees but there is little research concerning its efficacy in improving static and dynamic balance. This study aims to assess the feasibility of using the Nintendo Wii Balance Board (WBB) and Wii Fit game (WFg) for balance rehabilitation with lower-limb amputees. A pre-/post-intervention pilot study design with no control group was used. Participants received 5 WBB and WFg rehabilitation sessions / week for 8 weeks. The length of the training sessions gradually increased from 10 to 30 minutes. Clinical outcomes were measured before (T1) and after (T2) the program and consisted of: 1) walking (L-test), 2) function and balance (Amputee Mobility Predictor [AMPPRO]), 3) satisfaction (Health Care Satisfaction Questionnaire [HCSQ]), 4) motivation (visual analog scale), and 5) quality of life (Trinity Amputation and Prosthesis Experience Scales [TAPES]). All participants (n=3) showed an improvement on all the clinical outcomes, except for the two functional tests, where one participant performed worse at T2 than T1. This pilot study demonstrated the feasibility of using the WBB and its WFg for balance rehabilitation with lower-limb amputees. Further research is needed to determine if this method is at least as effective as conventional interventions.