Rehabilitation-Oriented Serious Game Development and Evaluation Guidelines for Musculoskeletal Disorders.

Area of Science:

• Rehabilitation Medicine
• Game Design
• Human-Computer Interaction

Background:

• Information and communication technology (ICT) has enabled serious games for functional rehabilitation.
• While serious games show promise for health management, guidelines for development and evaluation are lacking.
• Game performance is significantly influenced by the designed scenario.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop specific game scenarios for functional rehabilitation.
• To evaluate these scenarios with musculoskeletal patients.
• To propose evidence-based guidelines for serious game development and evaluation in rehabilitation.

Main Methods:

• A two-stage workflow utilizing a determinant framework was employed.
• Development guidelines covered 3D graphics, physical modeling, scenario design, and implementation.
• Evaluation guidelines included metric definition, campaign execution, user feedback analysis, and iterative improvement.

Main Results:

• A case study involving musculoskeletal patients and healthy controls demonstrated the guidelines' utility.
• Participants found the developed football and object manipulation games enjoyable and challenging.
• No adverse events were reported, and some healthy subjects improved performance with increased difficulty.

Conclusions:

• The proposed guidelines and associated games show proven effectiveness for musculoskeletal rehabilitation.
• This approach has the potential for integration into clinical practice.
• Serious games can benefit patients with musculoskeletal disorders.