alternative medicine
Research Papers
Clinical Neurofeedback: Case Studies, Proposed Mechanism, and Implications for Pediatric Neurology Practice
Trends in alternative medicine use by American health care consumers are rising substantially. Extensive literature exists reporting on the effectiveness of neurofeedback in the treatment of autism, closed head injury, insomnia, migraine, depression, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, epilepsy, and posttraumatic stress disorder. We speculated that neurofeedback might serve as a therapeutic modality for patients with medically refractory neurological disorders and have begun referring patients to train with clinical neurofeedback practitioners. The modality is not always covered by insurance. Confident their child’s medical and neurological needs would continue to be met, the parents of 3 children with epilepsy spectrum disorder decided to have their child train in the modality. The children’s individual progress following neurofeedback are each presented here. A proposed mechanism and practice implications are discussed.
View Full Paper →Flexyx Neurotherapy System in the Treatment of Traumatic Brain Injury: An Initial Evaluation:
Objective: To conduct a preliminary experimental evaluation of the potential efficacy of Flexyx Neurotherapy System (FNS), an innovative electroencephalography (EEG)-based therapy used clinically in the treatment of traumatic brain injury (TBI). Participants: Twelve people aged 21 to 53 who had experienced mild to moderately severe closed head injury at least 12 months previously and who reported substantial cognitive difficulties after injury, which interfered with their functioning. Design: Participants were randomly assigned to an immediate treatment group or a wait-list control group and received 25 sessions of FNS treatment. They were assessed at pretreatment, posttreatment, and follow-up with standardized neuropsychological and mood measures. Results: Comparison of the two groups on outcome measures indicated improvement after treatment for participants' reports of depression, fatigue, and other problematic symptoms, as well as for some measures of cognitive functioning. Most participants experienced meaningful improvement in occupational and social functioning. Conclusion: On the basis of these results, FNS appears to be a promising new therapy for TBI and merits more extensive evaluation.
View Full Paper →Neurofeedback Treatment of Depression with the Roshi
Introduction. A patient with severe, medication resistant depression was found to have the frontal alpha asymmetry described in Davidson's (1998a) research as demonstrating a predisposition to depression. Treatment. Initial sessions of EEG neurofeedback using Rosenfeld's (1997) protocol for correcting the alpha asymmetry were discouraging, actually producing slight negative change. Therefore, treatment shifted to using the Roshi, a two channel unit combining neurofeedback and photic stimulation, doing primarily left hemisphere beta training. Results. The very first Roshi session produced positive changes, and within five sessions the patient reported feeling less depressed and more energetic. At the conclusion of thirty training sessions, objective testing documented dramatic reductions in depression, somatic symptoms, overemotionality, anxiety, rumination, and fatigue. Discussion. In support of Henriques and Davidson's (1991) belief that hypoactivation of the left hemisphere results in an “approach deficit” and more withdrawal behavior, post-testing and interview data also documented that the patient had become less withdrawn, more active, sociable, and less distrustful. Eight and one-half month follow-up documented maintenance of changes. Continued exploration of left hemisphere beta protocols in treating depression, and of the combined use of neurofeedback with photic stimulation are encouraged.
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