Objectives:

To conduct a review of the use of Serious Video Games (SVG), applied in the different areas of the health-disease process: Primary prevention, secondary prevention, tertiary prevention, and teaching in Health Sciences (HS).

Materials and methods:

A search was carried out in PubMed, ScienceDirect, Cochrane Library, Bireme, and Dialnet, using the strategy: {[Serious game] AND [Health]}. The information was complemented with an additional search with the word [Serious game], and articles of interest for the study were included.

Results:

SVG are used in multiple fields; 43 articles related to the SVG were found; 15 for primary prevention, 10 in secondary prevention, 9 in tertiary prevention, and 9 in teaching. An article was found for the diagnosis area; this field being the most limited for the application of SVG.

Conclusions:

SVG are videogames with objectives other than leisure, being an innovative field in areas such as HS. SVG have had a positive impact, and can be applied in different levels of disease prevention and health education; however, development is still lacking, mainly in areas such as diagnosis. Studies with more numerous populations and statistically significant changes are required, but, so far, they have a promising future.

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