NeuroRegulation

A Critical Review of: Double-Blind Placebo-Controlled Randomized Clinical Trial of Neurofeedback for Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder With 13-Month Follow-Up

Gary Schummer — 2024-03-29

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common neurobehavioral condition affecting children and adolescents impairing academic success, self-esteem, and social interactions. Since there is no cure for ADHD, the public relies on researchers to provide an honest and objective evaluation of treatment options to help those with ADHD manage the disorder. The public’s expectation was thwarted when a study was published in the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry (JAACAP) titled Double-Blind Placebo-Controlled Randomized Clinical Trial of Neurofeedback for Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder with 13-Month Follow-Up (Arnold et al., 2021). The principal investigator and lead author was L. Eugene Arnold, MD, who referred to his coauthors as a collaborative team. The National Institute of Mental Health funded the study with a $2 million grant. This critical review of Arnold et al. examines various aspects of the study to help us understand why the findings and stated conclusion of the study deviated from a substantial body of research and clinical evidence demonstrating the effectiveness of NFB for treating ADHD.

Trauma-Informed Neurofeedback for Law Enforcement Occupational and Organizational Stress

James Spears — 2024-03-29

Occupational and organizational stressors impact workplace performance and contribute to mental health concerns among law enforcement officers. Although literature focuses on identifying the degree of relationship that these two factors have within this specific profession, studies offer limited solutions for decreasing associated symptoms relating to stressors. Implementing an intervention that acknowledges law enforcement factors such as psychological and physiological concerns, workplace culture, and mental health stereotypes could significantly impact both those that serve within this career as well as the community. In this article, we explore the use of trauma-informed neurofeedback a therapeutic intervention for the treatment of occupational and organizational stressors commonly experienced by law enforcement officers. We also present recommendations for clinical practice and research.

Habit Formation and Automaticity: Psychoneurobiological Correlates of Gamma Activity

Caroline Leaf — 2024-03-29

Within current mental healthcare practices, a reliable mechanism is needed for transitioning therapeutic interventions into long-term habit formation. While a sizeable body of literature on habit formation and automaticity looking at simple behaviors such as overall activity level and diet exists, few studies have investigated the complex behavior formation needed to instill new beneficial mental health habits. Additionally, limited research has looked at the neurophysiological or biological correlates of these mental processes and changes. Madhavan et al. (2015) proposed that, during active learning or recall, individuals exert more cognitive energy compared to information maintenance, resulting in heightened gamma activity. This new data demonstrates that gamma increases as learning is taking place then decreases once the behavior is learned (habituated), providing evidence of habit formation and automaticity and its nonlinear nature. The current pilot study seeks to contribute to the field’s developing knowledge of habit formation and automaticity as something that can be deliberately and mindfully learned, through a planned and guided approach over a specified time frame, to empower individuals to achieve lasting improvements in mental health challenges. Our research contributes practical strategies to improve interventions and achieve sustainable outcomes for the public health emergency in mental health.

Investigation of Neopterin and Neurophysiological Measurements as Biomarkers of Anxiety and Stress

Rouxzan Cronje — 2024-03-29

The aim of this study was to investigate whether the inflammatory marker neopterin and certain neurophysiological measurements could be used as complementary markers for stress and anxiety symptoms as determined by the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21) questionnaire. A cohort of 158 respondents completed the DASS-21 and biographical questionnaire which were used to stratify health sciences university students between Group A (n = 20), who had high levels of symptoms, and Group B (n = 20) who had normal levels of stress and anxiety. Neurophysiological measurements were taken from these participants, namely heart rate variability (HRV), blood pressure (BP), blood-volume pulse (BVP), electrodermal activity (EDA), and quantitative electroencephalography (qEEG). Each participant also donated a urine sample which was tested for neopterin concentration using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Neopterin positively correlated with the stress and anxiety scores, while HRV and BVP were negatively correlated with these scores. In terms of qEEG, delta and hibeta wave activity increased in the left and frontal brain regions of participants with high mental health scores, whereas alpha wave activity decreased in these regions. High DASS scores were associated with elevated neopterin concentration and neurophysiological changes (brain waves, HRV, and BVP).

Top-Level Managers’ Psychophysical Recovery Investigated Through Different Psychophysiological Parameters Benefits From Training Based on Muscle Relaxation and Self-monitoring of HRV-Biofeedback

Carlo Pruneti — 2024-03-29

Objective. The present study aimed to verify whether training based on progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) and self-monitoring of heart rate variability biofeedback (HRV-BFB) could lead to a significant reduction of psychophysical stress among top-level managers, measured on different physiological parameters related to the stress response. Methods. Thirty-four top-level managers, after completing the Symptom Questionnaire (SQ), were subjected to a psychophysiological stress profile (PSP) to describe the psychophysiological activation (Skin Conductance, surface Electromyography, Heart Rate, and Peripheral Temperature were registered in three phases: baseline, stress, and recovery). Following the intervention with PMR and HRV-BFB, SQ and PSP were readministered. Results. A condition of psychophysical stress was detected through SQ and PSP in the total sample at T0. The intervention allowed participants to reduce their psychological symptoms. Furthermore, muscular tension and skin conductance levels were significantly lower in the recovery phase of the PSP administered at T1. Additionally, a reduction in the reactivity to stress was observed in the HR value postintervention. Conclusion. Combining PMR and HRV-BFB therapy can reduce distress symptoms and improve responses to stress. It's cost-effective and offers many benefits, making it a widely recommended intervention.

Validation and Application of a Factorial Model of Attention in Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

María Agudo Juan — 2024-03-29

Background. Attentional processes and executive functions have been essential elements in the study of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This research aims to validate Ríos Lago and Muñoz-Céspedes (2004) factorial model of attention in ADHD and to investigate the attentional and executive alterations that occur in ADHD according to this model. Method. A total of 40 participants, aged between 7 and 16 years, took part in the study. The sample included 20 ADHD patients and 20 control subjects who participated as volunteers. Results. The factors identified through principal component analysis accounted for 78.81% of the variance in the data. Four factors were found, consistent with Ríos Lago and Muñoz-Céspedes’ model, based on the factor loadings and following neuropsychological criteria. Conclusions. The results supported the replicability of the proposed attentional model in ADHD. They demonstrated the presence of specific alterations in individuals with ADHD, as predicted by the model.

Effect of Attention on Prestimulus Neural Noise

Anoop Basavanahalli Jagadeesh — 2024-03-29

Attending to a target sound increases the number of cortical resources allotted towards processing the target stimuli, leading to larger response amplitudes for the cortical auditory evoked potentials (CAEPs). However, the effect of attention on the neural noise, as well its definition, is still not clear. Having defined neural noise as the neural activity immediately preceding a stimulus, we aimed to explore the effects of attention on the prestimulus activity when measured using CAEPs. Using a 256-channel montage, we compared the global RMS amplitudes of the prestimulus (PreRMS), poststimulus (PostRMS), and the difference between PostRMS and PreRMS (DiffRMS) measured under active attention and passive attention conditions. Paired t-tests revealed a significant attention-related increase in the amplitudes of all three measures. We suppose that the attention-related excitation of target-relevant cortical pathways as well as the inhibition of target-irrelevant mechanisms, in combination, resulted in an increase in the overall neural activity in the three measures. Higher prestimulus activity can, therefore, be used as an objective index of attention and is likely to indicate anticipatory cortical preparation. Our results further validate the supposition that prestimulus activity is not merely neural noise, but indicates the neurophysiological activity associated with complex sensory and/or cognitive functions.

The Age-Specific Impact of Alpha-Wave Binaural Acoustic Stimulation on Motor-Learning Aptitude

Mahla Azizzadeh Herozi — 2024-03-29

There are some reports on the impact of binaural acoustic beat (BAB) training on motor learning. The current study aimed to explain the possible influences of alpha BAB on motor learning in young and older adult individuals. To this end, 26 male participants were assigned to four parallel groups: two alpha BAB groups (young, older adults) and two control groups (young, older adults). The alpha BAB groups received alpha BAB for 30 min, whereas examinees in the control groups just wore headphones without listening to any music over the experiment period. The digital mirror-tracing task was employed to examine the subjects’ motor performance simultaneously with quantitative electroencephalography and after the intervention. In the mirror-tracing task, a significant decrease in the number of errors was found only for the older adults who received alpha BAB. Meanwhile, the reaction time decreased significantly in the young Alpha BAB group. Alpha BAB was associated with a notable increase in alpha current source density dynamics in the young subjects and enhanced beta, high beta oscillations, and gamma power in the older adults. Our findings suggest that alpha BAB might improve motor performance in older adults and young individuals through different patterns.