It amazes me today how much video game technology can help people with special disabilities, but the fact that they can be used in medical research in a low cost and helpful way.
 

Researchers from the Seoul National University College of Medicine have discovered a way to use the Nintendo Wiimotes to help diagnose and recognize oscular torticollis, which is a medical condition in which a patient will tilt their head to one side to compensate for a certain eye pathology. The university use an optical head tracker by fixing two Wii controllers to a mechanical frame and then connect them to a PC via Bluetooth. The Infrared LED’S are then placed onto a frame and placed on the forehead. This way, the movements by the head can be registered and recognized by the Wii controllers. The IOHT setup was compared with a standard cervical range of motion (CROM) device. This is one of the most widely used head posture measuring devices. The two setups were compared for one-dimensional and three-dimensional head posture measurements in normal adults. The comparison showed that in terms of accuracy, validity and reliability, the Wii setup measurements were very close to those of the CROM device.
 

This means by using this piece of technology with the Wiimotes, it becomes relatively low cost and the potential to be used daily in ophthalmological practice.
 

Via MedGadget

Bookmark to