Utilizzo del neurofeedback nella regolazione del comportamento emotivo. Uno studio con dati EEG e fNIRS

[Autom. eng. transl.] Neurofeedback (Nf) is a particular form of biofeedback which, based on the principle of operant conditioning, allows the brain to learn to regulate itself by modifying the coherence, amplitude and frequency of its electroencephalographic patterns, allowing the control of the functioning of some areas brain. In particular, the Nf technique is effective in reducing the symptomatology associated with some psychiatric diseases and neurological disorders and in the self-regulation of emotional behavior. Recent research shows that difficulties in emotional management are due to the presence of anomalies in the prefrontal activity of low frequency cortical bands. This pilot study evaluates the use of Nf training in enhancing delta band activity and in interhemispheric rebalancing associated with the processes of emotional processing, hypothesizing an improvement in emotional awareness, a more controlled, functional and adaptive management of emotions. Ten Nf sessions were administered to a sample of ten subjects, without neurological, organic or psychiatric disorders. In order to verify the efficacy of the treatment, the differences in cortical activity (EEG) and hemodynamics, detected through the technique of the Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (NIRS), related to the processes of emotional processing, during the display of 100 IAPS images. In addition to the neurophysiological evaluation, the Self Report BIS / BAS Scale was administered, to investigate the implementation of two behavioral systems: the Behavioral Activation System (BAS), indicating a tendency to approach related to reward mechanisms, and the Behavioral Inhibition System (BIS), indicating a tendency towards removal activated by punishment signals. For the evaluation of the perceived emotional experience the hedonic value and the activating effect of the emotional stimuli presented through the Self Assessment Manikin scale (SAM) were evaluated. The results show that: a) Following treatment with Nf the activity of the prefrontal delta band is enhanced and less lateralized and there is a concomitant increase in oxygenated hemoglobin in the prefrontal area. b) From the evaluation of the perceived emotional experience emerges a correct ability to discriminate the positive hedonic value, which results to be positively correlated with the BAS, of the negative hedonic value, which correlates positively with the BIS, and of the activating effect of the emotional stimuli presented. This study shows the efficacy of the complementary use of EEG and fNIRS as multimethod to investigate the neural correlates involved in emotional processing, as well as the validity of Nf in enhancing low-frequency delta prefrontal activity and re-balancing of interhemispheric activity, supporting its beneficial use also in clinical rehabilitation.