Health and health belief factors associated with screening and help-seeking behaviours for breast cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis of the European evidence.

Purpose: The aim of this systematic review was to identify health or health belief factors associated with mammography attendance or with self-initiated medical help-seeking for breast cancer symptoms among women in Europe.

Methods: Five databases were searched for articles published between 2005 and 2018. Meta-analyses were conducted for 13 factors related to screening attendance and two factors associated with help-seeking behaviour.

Board Games for Health: A Systematic Literature Review and Meta-Analysis.

Nondigital board games are being used to engage players and impact outcomes in health and medicine across diverse populations and contexts. This systematic review and meta-analysis describes and summarizes their impact based on randomized and nonrandomized controlled trials. An electronic search resulted in a review of n = 21 eligible studies.

A serious game for children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: Who benefits the most?

Objective: The aim of the current study was to identify which subgroups of children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) benefitted the most from playing a Serious Game (SG) intervention shown in a randomized trial to improve behavioral outcomes.

Method: Pre-intervention characteristics [i.e.

Design and Evaluation of a Pervasive Coaching and Gamification Platform for Young Diabetes Patients.

Self monitoring, personal goal-setting and coaching, education and social support are strategies to help patients with chronic conditions in their daily care. Various tools have been developed, e.g.

Behavioral Outcome Effects of Serious Gaming as an Adjunct to Treatment for Children With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: The need for accessible and motivating treatment approaches within mental health has led to the development of an Internet-based serious game intervention (called "Plan-It Commander") as an adjunct to treatment as usual for children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Objective: The aim was to determine the effects of Plan-It Commander on daily life skills of children with ADHD in a multisite randomized controlled crossover open-label trial.

Methods: Participants (N=170) in this 20-week trial had a diagnosis of ADHD and ranged in age from 8 to 12 years (male: 80.

Development and User Satisfaction of "Plan-It Commander," a Serious Game for Children with ADHD.

The need for engaging treatment approaches within mental health care has led to the application of gaming approaches to existing behavioral training programs (i.e., gamification).

Games for Health for Children-Current Status and Needed Research.

Videogames for health (G4H) offer exciting, innovative, potentially highly effective methods for increasing knowledge, delivering persuasive messages, changing behaviors, and influencing health outcomes. Although early outcome results are promising, additional research is needed to determine the game design and behavior change procedures that best promote G4H effectiveness and to identify and minimize possible adverse effects. Guidelines for ideal use of different types of G4H by children and adolescents should be elucidated to enhance effectiveness and minimize adverse effects.

Videogame Mechanics in Games for Health.

Game mechanics have been identified as "methods invoked by agents for interacting with the game world."(1) They are elements of game play that provide a primary source of interactivity and structure how videogames proceed. Many kinds of game mechanics have been generated.

Evaluating Efficacy and Validating Games for Health.

The field of games for health is growing rapidly, but many games for health are not validated for their use as a tool to improve outcomes. The few research studies that do exist are often poorly designed, and their conclusions cannot be considered valid evidence to support or refute efficacy. Based on lessons learned from the field of digital game-based learning in education and recent efforts to systematically review games for health in meta-analyses, guidelines are suggested for conducting high-quality efficacy studies on games for health.

A video game improves behavioral outcomes in adolescents and young adults with cancer: a randomized trial.

Objective: Suboptimal adherence to self-administered medications is a common problem. The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of a video-game intervention for improving adherence and other behavioral outcomes for adolescents and young adults with malignancies including acute leukemia, lymphoma, and soft-tissue sarcoma.

Methods: A randomized trial with baseline and 1- and 3-month assessments was conducted from 2004 to 2005 at 34 medical centers in the United States, Canada, and Australia.

Improvement in cancer-related knowledge following use of a psychoeducational video game for adolescents and young adults with cancer.

Purpose: Adolescents with chronic illnesses have been shown to have management and treatment issues resulting in poor outcomes. These issues may arise from non-interest in self care and illness knowledge. A video game, "Re-Mission," was developed to actively involve young people with cancer in their own treatment.

Factors affecting acceptability to young cancer patients of a psychoeducational video game about cancer.

This study explored whether an action video game about cancer would be acceptable to adolescent and young adult cancer patients as a tool for learning about cancer and self-care during treatment. Interviews about a proposed video game were conducted with 43 young cancer patients, who also completed questionnaires measuring personality and adaptive style. Data were analyzed to assess the overall acceptability of the proposed video game and to reveal any factors associated with measures of acceptability.

A survey of self-care and dependent-care advice given by pediatric oncology nurses.

This article reports a survey of the current practices of pediatric oncology nurses in advising patients and families about symptom reporting and self-care interventions. A questionnaire was mailed to 1000 pediatric oncology nurses requesting information about age, years of experience in nursing and pediatric oncology nursing, current work setting, and professional position. Recipients were asked about their practices for advising patients and their families about self-care measures and reporting of adverse symptoms.

Pediatric oncology professionals' perceptions of information needs of adolescent patients with cancer.

In contrast to the extensive research on the information needs of older patients with cancer, the question of what information is most relevant for adolescents seems to have been addressed in only one published study. The aim of the present study was to update and extend the sole previous survey of oncology professionals' views about the information needs of adolescent patients. This was achieved by including professionals other than physicians, by structuring the questionnaire to show whether perceived information needs were different for the time of diagnosis versus during treatment, and by differentiating between the 6 cancer diagnoses most commonly affecting adolescents.

A review of empirically supported psychosocial interventions for pain and adherence outcomes in sickle cell disease.

Objective: To review empirical studies of psychological interventions for pain and adherence outcomes among patients with sickle cell disease.

Method: We conducted a literature review of studies using psychological interventions targeted at pain and/or adherence behaviors related to sickle cell disease. The American Psychological Association Division 12 Task Force criteria (Chambless criteria) were used to evaluate the empirical support for three categories of interventions (cognitive-behavioral techniques, interventions aimed at behavioral change, and social support interventions).

Psychosocial support for patients in pediatric oncology: the influences of parents, schools, peers, and technology.

The diagnosis and treatment of pediatric cancer can be associated with profound psychosocial changes in the life of young patients. Although nurses, physicians, and other health care professionals are important sources of support, psychosocial support is also available through parents, schools, and peers. This article presents a review of the literature on how parents, schools, and peers affect the coping and adjustment of young patients with cancer and critically reviews interventions directed at improving functioning in these areas.