Video games are often associated with having adverse health effects, but it does not mean that video games have not been doing some good in the field of health. Recently, video games have made some really exciting contributions to health and science.

The first one hits close to home for me. I am one of the four percent of all people who suffer from amblyopia, commonly known as lazy eye. Among children, the condition is often corrected by wearing a patch over the stronger eye in order to encourage use of the lazy eye. I had to wear the patch, and in addition to that I completed grueling eye exercises while reading books that I simply did not enjoy. Needless to say, it was not fun, and wearing an eye patch was not exactly the best social experience.

In a treatment carefully designed by Dr. Uri Polat of the Goldschleger Eye Research Institute, children and adults with amblyopia actually may be able to play video games in order to help correct the problem. Results concluded that twenty hours in front of Dr. Polat’s computer treatment had the same effect as about 500 hours of wearing an eye patch. “Adults” is emphasized because there are very few treatments that currently exist for adults with a lazy eye. His form of computer therapy will hopefully bury all eye patches into a deep grave. Read more here.

Video games also may being doing some good in the medical field with the use of a combination of technology and mannequins to produce computer-simulated patient examinations. There are programs developing for students to have hands on experiences in physical examinations, as well as communication with the patient. The computer generates a challenge for the student who must respond appropriately to the situation. Currently, only breast examination programs are available, but the creators of this project plan to expand it to many more variables. Read more here.

So, there you have it, a computer game can indeed have a positive niche in the world of health and science.

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