Neurofeedback-based Visual Restoration Therapy

Status: Recruiting
Location: See all (2) locations...
Intervention Type: Procedure
Study Type: Interventional
Study Phase: Not Applicable
SUMMARY

Visual field defects are a common consequence of acquired brain injuries and affect people of all ages. These vision problems make everyday life more difficult-for example, when reading, driving, or moving around safely. However, there is currently no effective therapy to improve visual field defects. Previous training methods have focused on maximizing brain activity during a task. However, new findings show that the best performance is achieved when the brain is already in a state of high communication before the task. Our research shows that people can learn to increase communication between brain regions through neurofeedback. Studies have shown that neurofeedback can help people after a stroke: it improves the coordination of brain areas that are important for movement, thereby helping to increase mobility. Building on these findings, this study investigates whether EEG neurofeedback can support the visual centers in the brain to improve vision in patients with chronic visual field defects. The main objective of the study is to evaluate the effectiveness of neurofeedback in improving visual field defects. More specifically, the investigators are investigating the development of visual ability (expansion of the visual field, contrast sensitivity).

Eligibility
Participation Requirements
Sex: All
Minimum Age: 50
Maximum Age: 70
Healthy Volunteers: f
View:

• Chronic, stable HVFD (homologous lateral quadranopsia or hemianopsia)

• 12 months or more after stroke

• Age range 50-70

• Ability to provide informed consent

Locations
Other Locations
Switzerland
Inselspital
RECRUITING
Bern
Division of Neurorehabilitation, University Hospital of Geneva
NOT_YET_RECRUITING
Geneva
Contact Information
Primary
Adrian Guggisberg, MD
adrian.guggisberg@hug.ch
+41795537291
Time Frame
Start Date: 2025-11-17
Estimated Completion Date: 2028-04-30
Participants
Target number of participants: 14
Treatments
Active_comparator: Active phase
During the active phase, patients will receive real-time audio feedback on spontaneous alpha-band functional connectivity between ipsilesional associative visual areas and the rest of the brain. This will allow them to learn to improve their pathological brain interactions. The neurofeedback training will last about 40 minutes, with frequent breaks. It will be followed by visual stimulation of the affected visual field according to recommendations for inducing steady-state visual evoked potentials.
Sham_comparator: control phase
The control phase is structured identically to the active period, except that the acoustic neurofeedback is synthetically generated and not linked to the subject's actual functional connectivity, while still resembling its dynamic characteristics to ensure effective blinding. The training will last about 40 minutes, with frequent breaks. The training will be followed by visual stimulation of the affected visual field, just as in the active condition.
Related Therapeutic Areas
Sponsors
Leads: Adrian Guggisberg

This content was sourced from clinicaltrials.gov