J Korean Acad Fam Med.
2006 Sep;27(9):713-722.
Neurofeedback Treatment of Panic Disorder
- Affiliations
-
- 1Department of Family Medicine, Seoul National University, Korea.
- 2Mind-medi Psychiatric Clinic, Korea.
- 3Graduate School of East-West Medical Science, Kyunghee University, Korea.
- 4Seoul National University Gangnam Center, Korea.
- 5Department of Family Medicine, Pochun CHA University, Korea. lyjk@shinbiro.com
Abstract
-
BACKGROUND: It is reported that many types of psychiatric disorders, including anxiety disorder, are related with abnormal brain wave activity, and neurofeedback is associated with clinical improvement in generalized anxiety, OCD, phobic disorder, and PTSD. But in panic disorder, previous studies with neurofeedback are very lacking. Therefore, in this study, the author applied neurofeedback to patients with panic disorder, refractory to cognitive-behavioral therapy and medication.
METHODS
From March 2 to May 15 in 2005, six patients with a panic disorder had received 20 sessions of neurofeedback training. The author evaluated the treatment effect by using the alteration of K-APPQ score, the frequency of panic attack, medication and individual handicap.
RESULTS
All 6 patients completed 20 sessions of neurofeedback training. At the end, the score of total APPQ, agoraphobia, and interoceptive fear was decreased (P= 0.028) and the frequency of panic attack, medication, and individual handicap was also decreased.
CONCLUSION
Neurofeedback training was successful in reducing panic symptom severity, frequency and individual handicap. A controlled study on a larger population is strongly recommended.
