EEG-heart rate connectivity changes after sensorimotor rhythm neurofeedback training: Ancillary study
Metadatos
Mostrar el registro completo del ítemEditorial
Elsevier
Materia
EEG Heart rate Neurofeedback Sensorimotor rhythm Functional connectivity Fibromyalgia
Fecha
2021-12-12Referencia bibliográfica
Guzmán Alba... [et al.]. EEG-heart rate connectivity changes after sensorimotor rhythm neurofeedback training: Ancillary study, Neurophysiologie Clinique, Volume 52, Issue 1, 2022, Pages 58-68, ISSN 0987-7053, [https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neucli.2021.11.003]
Patrocinador
Spanish Government PSI2014-57231-RResumen
Objectives: Neurofeedback can induce long-term changes in brain functional connectivity,
but its influence on the connectivity between different physiological systems is unknown.
The present paper is an ancillary study of a previous paper that confirmed the effect of
neurofeedback on brain connectivity associated with chronic pain. We analysed the influence
of neurofeedback on the connectivity between the electroencephalograph (EEG) and
heart rate (HR).
Methods: Seventeen patients diagnosed with fibromyalgia were divided into three groups: good
sensorimotor rhythm (SMR) training responders (n = 4), bad SMR responders (n = 5) and fake training
(SHAM, n = 8). Training consisted of six sessions in which participants learned to synchronize
and desynchronize SMR power. Before the first training (pre-resting state) and sixth training
(post-resting state) session, open-eye resting-state EEG and electrocardiograph signals were
recorded.
Results: Good responders reduced pain ratings after SMR neurofeedback training. This improvement
in fibromyalgia symptoms was associated with a reduction of the connectivity between the
central area and HR, between central and frontal areas, within the central area itself, and
between central and occipital areas. The sham group and poor responders experienced no
changes in their fibromyalgia symptoms.
Conclusions: Our results provide new evidence that neurofeedback is a promising tool that can
be used to treat of chronic pain syndromes and to obtain a better understanding of the interactions
between physiological networks. These findings are preliminary, but they may pave the way for future studies that are more methodologically robust. In addition, new research questions
are raised: what is the role of the central-peripheral network in chronic pain and what is
the effect of neurofeedback on this network.