A Randomized Controlled Trial Comparing Neurofeedback and Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia Patients: Pilot Study

Insomnia is a common disease that negatively affects patients both mentally and physically. While insomnia disorder is mainly characterized by hyperarousal, a few studies that have directly intervened with cortical arousal. This study was conducted to investigate the effect of a neurofeedback protocol for reducing cortical arousal on insomnia compared to cognitive-behavioral treatment for insomnia (CBT-I). Seventeen adults with insomnia, free of other psychiatric illnesses, were randomly assigned to neurofeedback or CBT-I. All participants completed questionnaires on insomnia Insomnia Severity Index (ISI)], sleep quality Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI)], and dysfunctional cognition Dysfunctional Beliefs and Attitudes about Sleep Scale (DBAS-16)]. The neurofeedback group showed decreases in beta waves and increases in theta and alpha waves in various areas of the electroencephalogram (EEG), indicating lowered cortical arousal. The ISI and PSQI scores were significantly decreased, and sleep efficiency and sleep satisfaction were increased compared to the pre-treatment scores in both groups. DBAS scores decreased only in the CBT-I group (NF p?=?0.173; CBT-I p?=?0.012). This study confirmed that neurofeedback training could alleviate the symptoms of insomnia by reducing cortical hyperarousal in patients, despite the limited effect in reducing cognitive dysfunction compared to CBT-I.