It may not look much like a video game, but Akili Interactive's EndeavorRX, also known as Project EVO, just made history: it's the first game to be prescribed as a medication in the U.S. against ADHD.
This is a landmark decision by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which authorizes doctors to prescribe the game on iPhone and iPad for children ages 8 to 12 with ADHD (Attention Deficit and/or Hyperactivity Disorder), after seven years of clinical trials that studied over 600 children to confirm whether a game could really make a difference.
According to the largest of the five studies conducted, the answer is yes: one third of the children who underwent therapy «no longer had a measurable attention deficit in the objective attention measurements» after playing the game for a period of 25 minutes per day, five days a week for four weeks.
“Improvements against ADHD disorders after one month of treatment with EndeavorRx were maintained for up to one month,” the company reports, with the most common side effects being frustration and headache – making them seemingly mild compared to traditional medications.
Of course, it's important to note that this was a study by doctors working for the game, according to the study itself. However, even their own conclusion is that the results "are not sufficient to suggest that the game should be used as an alternative to established and recommended treatments for ADHD."
However, it is another therapy that can be tested and in the long term there will be a clearer picture of its results.
Additionally, it would be very interesting to see video game therapy used for something other than distraction or exercise. One of the most impressive examples we've heard is of burn victims using virtual reality (VR) to relieve their pain.
