An Alpha and Theta Intensive and Short Neurofeedback Protocol for Healthy Aging Working-Memory Training

Abstract

The present study tested the effects of an intensive and short alpha and theta neurofeedback (NF) protocol in working memory (WM) performance in a healthy elder population and explored the effects of a multimodal approach, by supplementing NF with cognitive tasks. Participants were allocated to four groups: NF (N = 9); neurofeedback supplemented with cognitive training (NFCT) (N = 8); cognitive training (CT) (N = 7) and sham neurofeedback (Sham-NF) (N = 6). The intervention consisted in 30-min sessions for 8 days. The NF group presented post intervention increases of alpha and theta relative power as well as performance in the matrix rotation task. In addition, a successful up training of frontal theta showed positive correlation with an improvement of post-training alpha and a better performance in the matrix rotation task. The results presented herein suggest that an intensive and short NF protocol enables elders to learn alpha and theta self-modulation and already presents moderate improvements in cognition and basal EEG. Also, CT group showed moderate performance gains on the cognitive tasks used during the training sessions but no clear improvements on neurophysiology and behavioral measurements were observed. This study represents a first attempt to study the effects of an intensive and short NF protocol in WM performance of elders. The evidence presented here suggests that an intensive and short NF intervention could be a valid alternative for introduction of older populations to NF methodologies.

Alpha Neurofeedback Training with a portable Low-Priced and Commercially Available EEG Device Leads to Faster Alpha Enhancement

“…Neither have they ruled out the expectancy effect on the side of the participants (placebo or Hawthorne effect, [94]), nor did such designs compensate for a potential experimenter bias. In the few studies using randomized sham feedback control groups, no significant results indicating an effect of alpha feedback on STM performance could be reported [60,95]. All these observations are in accordance with the review of Rogala [45], which excluded many alpha NFT studies for methodological considerations and could rate only one study [70] as success in regard of the effect of NFT on memory (i.e.…”

Brain-Computer Interface for Clinical Purposes: Cognitive Assessment and Rehabilitation

“…Such studies are of particular interest, because only few application of NFT previously addressed cognitive enhancement in the elderly [ 31 , 43 , 44 ].…”

Commentary: Free Will and Neuroscience: From Explaining Freedom Away to New Ways of Operationalizing and Measuring It

“…Lavazza is wise not to put his hypothesis in that gun line, while preserving the ability to present operational concepts, like that of a consciousness index. But that is precisely where a totally new type of epiphenomenal conundrum is introduced: if, for example, the role of a P-state is to trigger a phonological loop or an audiovisual sketch pad that will keep valuable information available for further cognitive operations, it is indistinguishable from what has been called central executive system, which is the instance assumed to operationalize these dedicated working memory modules for the past 40 plus years (Baddeley and Hitch, 1974). …”