Researchers from the Dept of Psychology at York University in Toronto find that imagining future success does indeed enhance people’s motivation to achieve success, and that third-person imagery does this more effectively than first person.

A small pilot study by researchers from the Department of Psychiatry and Mental Health Research at the Cluain Mhuire Family Centre in Dublin, Ireland looked at the impact of group-based mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) on reducing residual depressive symptoms in psychiatric outpatients with recurrent depression, and to especially explore the effects of these techniques on the symptom of rumination.

A review of the research literature reports that electroencephalogram (EEG) biofeedback, also known as neurofeedback, is a promising intervention for patients with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, comparable in efficacy to stimulant medications.

Researchers from Washington State Toxicology Laboratory reviewed the literature on Electroencephalogram (EEG) biofeedback, also known as neurofeedback, to assess its promise as an alternative treatment for patients with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD). (EEG biofeedback therapy rewards scalp EEG frequencies that are associated with relaxed attention, and suppresses frequencies associated with under- or over-arousal.)

This review reports that in large-scale clinical trials, the efficacy of EEG biofeedback for AD/HD is comparable to that of stimulant medications. Many different EEG biofeedback protocols for AD/HD are available. In particular, single-channel protocols developed by Lubar and inter-hemispheric protocols developed by the Othmers are widely practiced and supported by large-scale clinical studies.

Citation: Friel PN. EEG biofeedback in the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Alternative Medicine Review. 2007 Jun; 12 (2): pages 146-51. This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

A team from Yale conducts a systematic review of the literature and finds that mind-body therapies such as meditation, yoga and guided imagery are effective in reducing hypertension, with yoga having the strongest effect.

Dr. Ather Ali & his colleagues, of the Prevention Research Center, Yale School of Medicine, conducted a systematic review to assess the efficacy of mind-body therapies (MBT) versus placebo or active control in the treatment of hypertension or high blood pressure. The main outcome measures include change in systolic and diastolic blood pressure pre- and post-intervention period.

Ali’s team reviewed randomized, or quasi-randomized, controlled trials comparing mind-body techniques alone or in combination with conventional treatment to conventional treatment alone or no intervention/waiting list control.

 

A recent study by Gwen Wyatt and her team at Michigan State University concludes that reflexology as a single complementary therapy is a feasible option for women undergoing chemotherapy for breast cancer.

Investigators at The College of Nursing, Michigan State University, compared patients who chose (1) reflexology, (2) guided imagery, (3) guided imagery plus reflexology or (4) interview-only, in this non-randomised, unblinded trial with 96 women undergoing chemotherapy for various cancers.

Data on demographics, depression, anxiety, and functional status were collected using established instruments. Quality of life (QOL) and patient characteristics were assessed in relation to which complementary therapy was chosen.

Investigators from Philipps-University of Marburg in Germany did a meta-analysis of the efficacy of biofeedback (BFB) in treating migraine. A computerized literature search of the databases Medline, PsycInfo, Psyndex and the Cochrane library, enhanced by a hand search, identified 86 outcome studies, of which 55 studies met the inclusion criteria.

Researchers at the Institute of Nursing and Midwifery at the University of Brighton in the UK investigated the impact of foot massage and guided relaxation on the well-being of patients who had undergone coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery.

There was a significant effect of the intervention on the calm scores (ANOVA, P=0.014), mostly due to the massage, although to a lesser extent due to the imagery. Dunnett''s multiple comparison showed that this was attributable to increased calm among the massage group. There was also a clear but non-significant trend across all psychological variables for both foot massage and, to a lesser extent, guided relaxation, for improving psychological well-being. Both interventions were well received by the subjects.