Research on EEG Neurofeedback for Bipolar Disorder

Society for Neuronal Regulation
9th Annual Conference
Monterey, CA 27-30 October 2001

Neurofeedback For The Bipolar Child

Siegfried Othmer
EEG Spectrum International, Encino, CA

Bipolar Disorder used to be a rare diagnosis in childhood. Recent research has elevated the importance of Bipolar Disorder as an issue in perhaps 20% of children formally diagnosed as ADHD. The medical management of these children is problematic, tending to involve anticonvulsants and neuroleptics rather than stimulants and anti-depressants.

 

Neurofeedback can be very helpful with this condition. In fact, this population has probably been heavily represented in the ADHD clinical population seen by neurofeedback therapists over the years because of poor outcome with standard treatment.

 

This presentation will cover our historical approach to Bipolar Disorder in children and adults. Prior to the current prominence of this diagnosis, children with this condition might have been identified alternatively with Impulse Control Disorder, Tourette's Syndrome, Temporal Lobe Epilepsy or Complex Partial Seizures, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Intermittent Explosive Disorder, or simply anxiety and depression. Much of our historical clinical experience with these conditions is still relevant upon the reclassification of this clinical population.

 

The current clinical approach takes as its point of departure that the fundamental issue in these disorders is the inability of the brain to maintain stability, and that neurofeedback can enhance overall stability in cerebral state regulation. The condition is characterized by hemisphere-specific failure modes, with the left hemisphere tending toward depression, whereas the right tends toward mania. This duality can account for the fact that symptoms of depression and mania can be simultaneously prominent.

 

The specific neurofeedback approach that has been found most effective is to address the issue of bi-hemispheric communication by challenging communication linkages between them, and then to optimize the functioning of each hemisphere.

 

Case histories will be discussed in the context of the formal models, and data on adults will also be drawn upon to complete the picture.

 

For additional information, call the
Attention & Achievement Center at 925-280-9100

Click here to read the legal disclaimer.