Oct. 7, 2015
Dr. Stephanie Burns, assistant professor in the Department of Counselor Education and Counseling Psychology, has published a new journal article, "Neurofeedback in Hereditary Angioedema: A Single Case Study of Symptom Reduction" in the journal "Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback.”
Neurofeedback training was performed consisting of rewarding and encouraging 12-15 Hz brainwaves (SMR), while simultaneously discouraging 4-7 Hz brainwaves (theta) and 22-30 Hz brainwaves (high beta) in the right dorsal posterior quadrant of the brain (T4, P4) for 20 half-hour NFB sessions to determine the impact on cortisol levels, DHEA-S levels, scores on the Symptom Checklist-90-R (SCL-90-R), the quality of life inventory, and acute attack medication usage for a Hereditary Angioedema (HAE) patient.
This study mirrored the benefits found using neurofeedback with other chronic physical conditions in the literature. Specifically, it raises the question about focusing on specific quadrants of the brain and using specific training frequencies to target stress triggers for HAE patients. As stress triggers are a large part of HAE as well as the chemical nature of HAE creating a stress feedback loop for patients, neurofeedback may be one tool to help individuals experiencing HAE regain resiliency to stress without causing HAE attacks or other unwanted side effects. Further research is needed to develop and validate this neurofeedback protocol for HAE patients as well as explore the efficacy of other neurofeedback protocols for HAE in order to generalize the findings.