Gaming with friends can help stroke recovery
Stroke patients recover faster if they play a computer games with a carer rather than alone, a new study found.
Having someone to play with boosted the patient’s efforts they put into physio to build up muscle strength.
The collaborative Balloon Buddies game was developed by Imperial College London scientists to speed up the rehabilitation of physically impaired patients.
It is designed to be played with a healthy volunteer such as therapists and family members.
Both players control the height of their balloon using a Gripable device by either squeezing to inflate a balloon or releasing their grip to deflate the balloon.
Research Associate Dr Michael Mace said: “Video games are a great way of providing repetitive exercise to help patients.”