Brainwave signatures--an index reflective of the brain's functional neuroanatomy: further findings on the effect of EEG sensorimotor rhythm biofeedback training on the neurologic precursors of learning disabilities.
Eight boys, ages 7 years 11 months to 15 years 3 months, were provided with long-term--symptom duration--sensorimotor rhythm biofeedback training for the remediation of their learning disabilities. Concurrently, the simultaneous recording of five frequency bands of brainwave activity (5 Hz, 7 Hz, 10 Hz, 12 Hz and 14 Hz), from one active electrode equidistant from reference and ground, was intended to provide a glimpse of the 'brainwave signature' reflective of the dynamic and synergistic processes involved in such cerebro-neural activation and the brain's global response to such an alteration in the sensorimotor subnetwork. Overall, the main effect of this procedure, for the biofeedback and subsequent conditioning of increased 14 Hz neural discharge patterns over the central Rolandic cortex in a clinical office setting, seems to be to increase bilateral sensorimotor transactions resulting in substantive remediation of the learning disabilities of the recipients of such training--by way of internally exercising of, and/or recruitment of additional neural activation within, the sensorimotor subnetwork/matrix. Observation of the changing brainwave signatures showed a tendency for decreased slow wave activity concomitant with increases in fast wave activity, for cases with a Full Scale I.Q. within the range of 76 and 85; with those cases with a Full Scale I.Q. within the range of 102 and 116 exhibiting increased amplitudes over most of the monitored bands, but with the increases being much less at the slower frequencies. It is noteworthy that those four subjects with either a significant Verbal greater than Performance, or Performance greater than Verbal, I.Q. Score discrepancy exhibited no less than a 40% greater increase in the lower of the two I.Q. scores; indicating that this SMR training procedure also resulted in an increased symmetry in the interhemispheric interactions reflective of the higher cortical functions for these no longer learning disabled boys.
D000293:Adolescent; D001676:Biofeedback, Psychology; D001921:Brain / Q000503:physiopathology*; D002648:Child; D004569:Electroencephalography; D006801:Humans; D007859:Learning Disabilities / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D008297:Male; D011603:Psychophysiology