Serious games in child and adolescent health education campaigns: a systematic review

Background. The use of playful tools to promote children’s and adolescents’ health in schools is growing. Educational games are proven tools for promoting virtuous behaviours. This systematic review explores the significance of serious games in promoting health education among young audiences, particularly about hand, oral and respiratory hygiene, immunisation, antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and sexually transmitted infections. Methods. This study was conducted in March 2023 on PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science and Embase using the population, exposure, outcome, and study design framework (PEOS). Articles in English and Italian were published within the past decade regarding campaigns with educational games on hygiene for students aged 3 to 19 years who do not have chronic conditions or disabilities. Final screening resulted in including the study of 40 articles of the 1,577 records initially extracted. Results. The results indicate that play positively influences the quality of learning. Serious games have been demonstrated to have a high potential in child and adolescent health education campaigns. Conclusions. Games can effectively engage young individuals, promote healthy behaviors, prevent diseases and enhance health literacy. As serious games continue to evolve, further research and collaboration are needed to utilize their full potential to improve children’s and adolescents’ health and well-being worldwide. © 2024 Istituto Superiore di Sanita. All rights reserved.