Serious games for health, well-being, and medical applications

2017 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 43 ◽  
Author(s):  
PamelaM Kato
Keyword(s):  
Serious Games ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Medical Applications ◽  
Games For Health

Cells of War: A Serious Game for Familiarizing Players With the Immune System

2018 ◽  
Vol 49 (5) ◽  
pp. 567-589 ◽  
Author(s):  
Konstantina Konstantara ◽  
Stelios Xinogalos
Keyword(s):  
Immune System ◽  
Serious Games ◽  
Significant Contribution ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Card Game ◽  
Game Engine ◽  
Learning Content ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Games For Health

Background. Health constitutes a major field in serious games because of the wide range of applications and the significant contribution to humans and society. The spectrum of games for health meets the needs for education, training, treatment, rehabilitation, research, well-being, prevention, motivation and others. Aim. Cells of War is a serious card game, aiming to familiarize the players with the complex functionalities of the immune system, inform on diseases coming from viruses, bacteria, parasites or fungi and explain how some daily habits may affect health. Method. This article analyzes all the design steps followed in order to integrate the learning content into the game mechanics and game-play. The offline card game was developed in the game engine Unity, making it possible to build executables for Windows, Linux and Mac OS X and distribute them to the users for the first pilot evaluation. The results of the pilot evaluation are presented along with useful feedback for the game. Results. Cells of War was evaluated by a wide range of people on different age groups, interests, gaming background, knowledge background and among them a few health specialists and educators. Overall the game achieved to transfer some knowledge, while the feedback will contribute to the improvement of the game. Conclusions. The pilot evaluation of Cells of War showed that the game is fun, well-designed and achieves to educate the players, although the participants suggested a few issues for improvement. Cells of War has to be used and evaluated by students and teachers in order to assess the game as an instructional tool in schools and evaluate its impact on learning the functionalities of the immune system.

Formative Research for STEM Educational Games

2013 ◽  
Vol 221 (2) ◽  
pp. 90-97 ◽  
Author(s):  
John L. Sherry
Keyword(s):  
Video Game ◽  
Serious Games ◽  
Educational Games ◽  
Sesame Street ◽  
Children's Television ◽  
Educational Video ◽  
Educational Media ◽  
Television Shows ◽  
Educational Video Game ◽  
Games For Health

Millions in taxpayer and foundation euros and dollars have been spent building and testing educational video games, games for health, and serious games. What have been the fruits of this frenzy of activity? What educational video game has had the reach and impact of Sesame Street or Blues Clues television shows? By comparison, the Children’s Television Workshop (CTW) managed to get Sesame Street off the ground within a couple of years, writing the basic scientific literature on educational media design in the process. Not only is Sesame Street well known and proven, it laid the basis for every effective educational show to follow. This article explores the differences between the CTW scientific approach to educational media production and the mostly nonscientific approach consuming so many resources in the educational games, games for health, and serious games movements. Fundamental scientific questions that remain unanswered are outlined.

Revisiting the K-nn algorithm for obstetric image segmentation

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
P. Salgado ◽  
T.-P. Azevedo Perdicoúlis
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Resonance Image ◽  
Medical Image ◽  
Clustering Algorithm ◽  
Ultrasound Image ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health Conditions ◽  
Medical Applications ◽  
Training Set ◽  
Segmentation Methods ◽  
Segmentation Algorithms

Medical image techniques are used to examine and determine the well-being of the foetus during pregnancy. Digital image processing (DIP) is essential to extract valuable information embedded in most biomedical signals. After, intelligent segmentation methods, based on classifier algorithms, must be applied to identify structures and relevant features from previous data. The success of both is essential for helping doctors to identify adverse health conditions from the medical images. To obtain easy and reliable DIP methods for foetus images in real-time, at different gestational ages, aware pre-processing needs to be applied to the images. Thence, some data features are extracted that are meant to be used as input to the segmentation algorithms presented in this work. Due to the high dimension of the problems in question, assemblage of the data is also desired. The segmentation of the images is done by revisiting the K-nn algorithm that is a conventional nonparametric classifier. Besides its simplicity, its power to accomplish high classification results in medical applications has been demonstrated. In this work two versions of this algorithm are presented (i) an enhancement of the standard version by aggregating the data apriori and (ii) an iterative version of the same method where the training set (TS) is not static. The procedure is demonstrated in two experiments, where two images of different technologies were selected: a magnetic resonance image and an ultrasound image, respectively. The results were assessed by comparison with the K-means clustering algorithm, a well-known and robust method for this type of task. Both described versions showed results close to 100% matching with the ones obtained by the validation method, although the iterative version displays much higher reliability in the classification.

Einführung in die Vergangenheit, Gegenwart und Zukunft von Serious Games (for Health)

2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 272-279 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Tolks ◽  
Kevin Dadaczynski ◽  
David Horstmann
Keyword(s):  
Serious Games ◽  
Games For Health

scholarly journals Integrating Health Behavior Theory and Design Elements in Serious Games

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Colleen Cheek ◽  
Theresa Fleming ◽  
Mathijs FG Lucassen ◽  
Heather Bridgman ◽  
Karolina Stasiak ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Behavior ◽  
Behavior Change ◽  
Game Design ◽  
Serious Games ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health Behavior Change ◽  
Serious Game ◽  
User Perceptions ◽  
Design Elements ◽  
User Centered

Background Internet interventions for improving health and well-being have the potential to reach many people and fill gaps in service provision. Serious gaming interfaces provide opportunities to optimize user adherence and impact. Health interventions based in theory and evidence and tailored to psychological constructs have been found to be more effective to promote behavior change. Defining the design elements which engage users and help them to meet their goals can contribute to better informed serious games. Objective To elucidate design elements important in SPARX, a serious game for adolescents with depression, from a user-centered perspective. Methods We proposed a model based on an established theory of health behavior change and practical features of serious game design to organize ideas and rationale. We analyzed data from 5 studies comprising a total of 22 focus groups and 66 semistructured interviews conducted with youth and families in New Zealand and Australia who had viewed or used SPARX. User perceptions of the game were applied to this framework. Results A coherent framework was established using the three constructs of self-determination theory (SDT), autonomy, competence, and relatedness, to organize user perceptions and design elements within four areas important in design: computer game, accessibility, working alliance, and learning in immersion. User perceptions mapped well to the framework, which may assist developers in understanding the context of user needs. By mapping these elements against the constructs of SDT, we were able to propose a sound theoretical base for the model. Conclusions This study’s method allowed for the articulation of design elements in a serious game from a user-centered perspective within a coherent overarching framework. The framework can be used to deliberately incorporate serious game design elements that support a user’s sense of autonomy, competence, and relatedness, key constructs which have been found to mediate motivation at all stages of the change process. The resulting model introduces promising avenues for future exploration. Involving users in program design remains an imperative if serious games are to be fit for purpose.

scholarly journals MULTIDISCIPLINARIDADE E O DESENVOLVIMENTO DE SERIOUS GAMES E SIMULADORES PARA EDUCAÇÃO EM SAÚDE

2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 149-172 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liliane S. Machado ◽  
Thaise Kelly de Lima Costa ◽  
Ronei Marcos de Moraes
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Reality ◽  
Computer Science ◽  
Serious Games ◽  
Computer Applications ◽  
Software Project ◽  
Health Statistics ◽  
Palabras Clave ◽  
Games For Health ◽  
And Training

O desenvolvimento de aplicações computacionais deve ser guiado pelas necessidades do cliente, considerando todas as etapas do projeto de um software. Quando estas aplicações são voltadas para educação em saúde, observa-se a necessidade de abordar aspectos relacionados a pelo menos quatro áreas: educação, saúde, estatística e computação, evidenciando a necessidade de uma abordagem multidisciplinar para a produção de ferramentas efetivas e eficientes para os problemas a que se destinam. Este artigo apresenta e discute etapas consideradas fundamentais no processo de desenvolvimento de serious games e simuladores de treinamento para a saúde baseados em realidade virtual.   PALAVRAS-CHAVE: realidade virtual; jogos em saúde; serious games.     ABSTRACT The development of computer applications must be guided by clients’ needs and must consider all step of software project. It is necessary to integrate knowledge of four areas: education, health, statistics and computer science when those applications are for education in health what makes evident the need of a multidisciplinar approach for the production of effective and efficient tools for the purpose expected. This paper presents and discusses fundamental steps for the development of serious games and training simulators for health based on virtual reality   KEYWORDS: virtual reality; games for health; serious games.     RESUMEN El desarrollo de las aplicaciones informáticas debe guiarse por las necesidades de los clientes y debe considerar todos los pasos del proyecto de software. Es necesario integrar el conocimiento de cuatro áreas: educación, salud, estadística e informática cuando esas aplicaciones son para la educación en salud, lo que hace evidente la necesidad de un enfoque multidisciplinario para la producción de herramientas eficaces y efectivas para el propósito esperado. Este artículo presenta y discute los pasos fundamentales para el desarrollo de juegos serios y simuladores de entrenamiento para la salud basados en la realidad virtual.   PALABRAS CLAVE: realidad virtual, juegos para salud, serious games.  

scholarly journals Serious games for health: three steps forwards

2017 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
David Drummond ◽  
Alice Hadchouel ◽  
Antoine Tesnière
Keyword(s):  
Serious Games ◽  
Games For Health

Review of Serious Games for People with Diabetes

2016 ◽  
pp. 412-447 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandra Makhlysheva ◽  
Eirik Årsand ◽  
Gunnar Hartvigsen
Keyword(s):  
Type 1 Diabetes ◽  
Young People ◽  
Systematic Reviews ◽  
Serious Games ◽  
Distribution Channel ◽  
Treatment Regimens ◽  
Current State ◽  
The Status ◽  
Games For Health

This chapter aims to illuminate the current state of the field of diabetes-related serious games. First, it describes the problems and difficulties for young people with type 1 diabetes associated with their adherence to treatment regimens. The chapter also discusses various tendencies in the field of diabetes-related games that follow the findings of the systematic reviews performed between 2012 and 2014. Based on the reviews, significant gameplay features of games for health are identified. Further, it presents an example of a smartphone-based serious game developed for children with type 1 diabetes. Finally, this chapter discusses the distribution channel and platforms for serious games and improvements for the status of the field of games for health.

Servitization versus Commoditization: the Business Model Dilemma Confronting Serious Games for Health

2013 ◽  
pp. 75-84
Author(s):  
Alasdair G Thin ◽  
Giusy Fiucci ◽  
Angelo Marco Luccini ◽  
Michel Rudnianski ◽  
Rosa García Sánchez ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Business Model ◽  
Serious Games ◽  
Games For Health
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