Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, May 17, 1990 TAG: 9005170601
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-10 EDITION: EVENING
SOURCE:
DATELINE: BOSTON LENGTH: Short
The doctor described one such case as that of a 13-year-old girl who played a Nintendo game steadily for three hours.
Seizures caused by flickering light are called photosensitive epilepsy. It is uncommon and occurs in about 2 percent to 3 percent of people with epilepsy. In these people, ordinary television, disco strobe lights or sunlight seen flashing through leaves while riding in a car may touch off a seizure.
While video games also may trigger seizures in people who already have epilepsy, they do not cause the underlying disorder.
The latest example was reported by Dr. Edward J. Hart of the Franciscan Children's Hospital in Boston. His letter, headlined "Nintendo Epilepsy," was published in today's New England Journal of Medicine.
In a statement, Nintendo of America said the company "is sympathetic to those who suffer from photosensitive epilepsy." It urged victims to consult their doctors.
In the same issue of the journal, Dr. Richard Brasington of the Marshfield Clinic in Wisconsin described another potential hazard of too much game playing - Nintendinitis.
He described a 35-year-old woman who woke up with a sore thumb the day after she played non-stop Nintendo for five hours. The pain went away after she took a pain killer and avoided video games for a few days.
- Associated Press
by CNB