The effectiveness of neurofeedback on cognitive functioning in patients with Alzheimer’s disease: Preliminary results

Objectives: Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia. In quantified EEG (qEEG), the AD patients have a greater amount of theta activity compared with normal elderly individuals. Little is known about the effect of neurofeedback in patients with dementia. The objective of this study was to examine whether neurofeedback has a positive effect on cognitive performance in patients with AD.

Methods: Ten patients with qEEG meeting criteria for AD received neurofeedback training. Participants were aged between 61 and 90 years. All patients underwent the CAMCOG test designed to assess cognitive functioning pre- and post-treatment.

Results: The individual results, analyzed with a reliable change index (RCI), showed that patients who received neurofeedback treatment had stable cognitive functions. These patients showed improvement in memory after neurofeedback and other cognitive functions were stable. In addition, an improvement was observed in recall of information and recognition.

Conclusion: Patients with AD who received neurofeedback treatment had stable or improved cognitive performance. Future research should focus on the design of high quality randomized controlled trials to assess whether neurofeedback has a place in the treatment of AD.