Introducing a Special Issue of Biofeedback Magazine

Abstract

In 2001, AAPB and ISNR joined hands to establish a Task Force to develop guidelines for the evaluation of clinical efficacy in biofeedback and neurofeedback. Theodore LaVaque et al. (2002) published the Task Force report, creating an efficacy rating scale for biofeedback and neurofeedback interventions. The efficacy rating runs as follows, based on the credibility of current published research on specific disorders:Since that time, AAPB has published three editions of the book Evidence-Based Practice in Biofeedback and Neurofeedback (Yucha & Gilbert, 2004; Yucha & Montgomery, 2008; Tan et al., 2016). Each edition of these books has carefully reviewed the emerging published research on the various application areas for biofeedback, from adult headache to urinary incontinence, using widely respected authors, and rating each application's efficacy according to the current evidence for efficacy. Over the 18 years since the first edition, the published research has grown and improved in many areas, resulting in improved efficacy ratings for several disorders.The Evidence-Based series provides a handbook for clinicians who wish to consider biofeedback or neurofeedback for a new client's condition, and a reference source for referring physicians.Currently, AAPB is preparing to publish a fourth edition of Evidence-Based Practice in Biofeedback and Neurofeedback, with a new editorial team including Inna Khazan, Fredric Shaffer, Randy Lyle, Saul Rosenthal, and Donald Moss. The next two issues of Biofeedback magazine will include chapters from that upcoming fourth edition. This issue opens with a chapter by Donald Moss, summarizing the abundant research on both biofeedback and neurofeedback interventions for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Based on the evidence for therapeutic benefit, supported by a growing number of randomized controlled trials on both biofeedback and neurofeedback, the chapter rates biofeedback and neurofeedback as Level Four – Efficacious for PTSD.Next, this special issue includes a chapter by Sarah Prinsloo on the newer and still emerging research on neurofeedback for chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN). Prinsloo reviews two randomized controlled trials and one case study on neurofeedback for CIPN and rates this application area as Level Four – Efficacious.This issue also includes a Letter to the Editor from Eric Willmarth, Cynthia Kerson, Richard Sherman, and Jerry Devore. Their letter is a response to an article by Mari Swingle in the Fall 2021 issue of Biofeedback. The four begin by applauding Mari Swingle for emphasizing the importance of well-trained and well-informed providers in providing appropriate neurofeedback services. However, they take issue with her minimizing the need for randomized controlled trials and discounting the use of placebo controls. Their letter highlights controversies in the field and central issues in clinical biofeedback and neurofeedback research.Erik Peper and Richard Harvey provide an article describing a treatment protocol for a first-session psychophysiological assessment for abdominal nausea and gastrointestinal discomfort. Their assessment uses the physiological recording to identify possible mechanisms for the illness, such as abdominal muscle tension, autonomic activation, and stressful thoughts. The authors emphasize the importance of providing the client with a clear understanding of the psychophysiological processes at play. Peper and Harvey also use this initial session to give the individual beginning experiences of self-regulation, for example, showing a patient how diaphragmatic breathing modifies her overactivated physiology.