Systems and methods for neurofeedback-triggered therapy for neurological conditions
Systems and methods for neurofeedback-triggered therapy for neurological conditions in accordance with embodiments of the invention are illustrated. One embodiment includes a neurofeedback-triggered therapy system, including a plurality of vibrotactile stimulators, a brain activity recorder, and a controller, including a processor, and a memory, the memory containing a neurofeedback application, where in order to condition a user to reduce the symptoms of a neurological condition on demand triggered by upregulating sensorimotor rhythm (SMR) activity, the neurofeedback application directs the processor to obtain brain activity data from the brain activity recorder, identify sensorimotor rhythm (SMR) spindles in the brain activity data, and provide vibrotactile Coordinated Reset (vCR) stimulation to a user using the plurality of vibrotactile stimulators when SMR spindles are identified, where the vCR stimulation reduces the symptoms of a neurological condition of the user.
1 . A neurofeedback-triggered therapy system for reducing symptoms of a neurological condition of a user, comprising:
a plurality of vibrotactile stimulators;
a brain activity recorder; and
a controller, comprising:
a processor; and
a memory, the memory containing a neurofeedback application,
wherein the neurofeedback application is configured to direct the processor to:
obtain brain activity data from the brain activity recorder;
identify sensorimotor rhythm (SMR) spindles in the brain activity data; and
responsive to identification of the SMR spindles, provide a therapeutic stimulation with a therapeutic effect to the user,
wherein the therapeutic stimulation comprises vibrotactile Coordinated Reset (vCR) stimulation using the plurality of vibrotactile stimulators,
wherein the vCR stimulation is configured to reduce the symptoms of the neurological condition of the user by desynchronizing abnormal synchrony in the user's brain; and
whereby the vCR stimulation is configured to condition the user to consciously upregulate a frequency of the SMR spindles to induce desynchronization of abnormal synchrony during a subsequent period without the vCR stimulation.
2 . The neurofeedback-triggered therapy system of claim 1 , wherein the brain activity recorder is an electroencephalogram (EEG) machine.
3 . The neurofeedback-triggered therapy system of claim 2 , wherein the EEG machine is integrated into a headwear.
4 . The neurofeedback-triggered therapy system of claim 1 , wherein the neurological condition is selected from the group consisting of: Parkinson's disease, essential tremor, dystonia, epilepsy, dysfunction after stroke, obsessive-compulsive disorder, Tourette syndrome, dementia, depression, and complex regional pain syndrome.
5 . The neurofeedback-triggered therapy system of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of vibrotactile stimulators comprises eight vibrotactile stimulators, where each vibrotactile stimulator is configured to be uniquely placed on fingertips of an index finger, a middle finger, a ring finger, and a pinky finger of a right and a left hand of the user.
6 . The neurofeedback-triggered therapy system of claim 5 , wherein the vCR stimulation is provided in a wave-inducing stimulation sequence.
7 . The neurofeedback-triggered therapy system of claim 6 , wherein the neurofeedback application is further configured to direct the processor to introduce a shift into the wave-inducing stimulation sequence after a predetermined number of stimulation cycles.
8 . The neurofeedback-triggered therapy system of claim 1 , further comprising a display, where the neurofeedback application is further configured to direct the processor to provide visual feedback via the display.
9 . The neurofeedback-triggered therapy system of claim 8 , wherein the visual feedback comprises a point counter, where the point counter is configured to increment upon identification of an SMR spindle.
10 . A method for neurofeedback-triggered therapy, comprising:
conditioning a user to reduce symptoms of a neurological condition on demand by:
obtaining brain activity data from a brain activity recorder;
identifying sensorimotor rhythm (SMR) spindles in the brain activity data; and
responsive to the identification of the SMR spindles, providing a therapeutic stimulation with a therapeutic effect to the user,
wherein the therapeutic stimulation comprises vibrotactile Coordinated Reset (vCR) stimulation using a plurality of vibrotactile stimulators,
wherein the vCR stimulation reduces the symptoms of the neurological condition of the user by desynchronizing abnormal synchrony in the user's brain, and
whereby the vCR stimulation conditions the user to consciously upregulate a frequency of the SMR spindles to induce desynchronization of abnormal synchrony during a subsequent period without the vCR stimulation.
11 . The method for neurofeedback-triggered therapy of claim 10 , wherein the brain activity recorder is an electroencephalogram (EEG) machine.
12 . The method for neurofeedback-triggered therapy of claim 11 , wherein the EEG machine is integrated into a headwear.
13 . The method for neurofeedback-triggered therapy of claim 10 , wherein the neurological condition is selected from the group consisting of: Parkinson's disease, essential tremor, dystonia, epilepsy, dysfunction after stroke, obsessive-compulsive disorder, Tourette syndrome, dementia, depression, and complex regional pain syndrome.
14 . The method for neurofeedback-triggered therapy of claim 10 , wherein the plurality of vibrotactile stimulators comprises eight vibrotactile stimulators, where each stimulator is configured to be uniquely placed on fingertips of an index finger, a middle finger, a ring finger, and a pinky finger of a right and a left hand of the user.
15 . The method for neurofeedback-triggered therapy of claim 14 , wherein the vCR stimulation is provided in a wave-inducing stimulation sequence.
16 . The method for neurofeedback-triggered therapy of claim 15 , further comprising introducing a shift into the wave-inducing stimulation sequence after a predetermined number of stimulation cycles.
17 . The method for neurofeedback-triggered therapy of claim 10 , further comprising providing visual feedback via a display.
18 . The method for neurofeedback-triggered therapy of claim 17 , wherein the visual feedback comprises a point counter, where the point counter increments upon identification of an SMR spindle.
19 . A neurofeedback-triggered therapy system for reducing symptoms of a neurological condition of a user, comprising:
a plurality of stimulators;
a brain activity recorder; and
wherein the controller is configured to:
obtain brain activity data from the brain activity recorder;
identify SMR spindles in the brain activity data; and
responsive to identification of SMR spindles, provide a therapeutic stimulation with a therapeutic effect to the user,
wherein the therapeutic stimulation is provided using the plurality of stimulators,
wherein the stimulation is configured to treat the symptoms of the neurological condition by desynchronizing abnormal synchrony in the user's brain, and
whereby the stimulation is configured to condition the user to consciously upregulate a frequency of the SMR spindles to induce desynchronization of abnormal synchrony during a subsequent period without the vCR stimulation.
20 . The system of claim 19 , wherein:
the brain activity recorder is an electroencephalogram (EEG) machine;
the stimulation is Coordinated Reset stimulation delivered using a stimulation mechanism selected from the group consisting of: vibrotactile stimulation, acoustic stimulation, visual stimulation, thermal stimulation, transcutaneous electrical stimulation, transcranial electrical stimulation, and transcranial magnetic stimulation;
the stimulation is configured to treat the symptoms of the neurological condition by desynchronizing abnormal synchronizations in the user's brain; and
the neurological condition is selected from the group consisting of: Parkinson's disease, essential tremor, dystonia, epilepsy, dysfunction after stroke, obsessive-compulsive disorder, Tourette syndrome, dementia, depression, and complex regional pain syndrome.