Comparison of the Wii Balance Board and the BESS Tool Measuring Postural Stability in Collegiate Athletes

Proper evaluation of postural stability is an integral part of the comprehensive management of concussed athletes. Clinicians are in need of a cost-effective and objective tool to assist them in their assessments performed in a variety of health care settings. This non-experimental design compared the Wii Balance Board (WBB), a recreational gaming system, to the Balance Error Scoring System (BESS), a tool developed for sports medicine clinicians for the assessment of postural stability in concussed athletes. The WBB has been proven to be used in various settings for rehabilitation but has not yet been used for the assessment of postural stability (Butler et al., 2010). This study hypothesized whether the WBB, when compared to the BESS, is an objective tool that can be used as an acceptable measurement of postural stability in college athletes. Ninety-one male collegiate football players participated in the study and were measured for postural stability both with the WBB and the BESS tool. Findings revealed that there was a direct and positive correlation between these two instruments. The WBB when compared to the BESS is found to valid tool in assessing postural stability. These results lay the foundation for future research on the WBB and its' usefulness in measuring postural stability. The portable and cost effective WBB potentially could be used in various settings to aid in the concussion management of athletes. It is imperative that nursing becomes more actively involved in the research, prevention and education of concussions. Nursing plays an integral role in the management of concussions and future research on concussions should be conducted by nurse scholars.