Neurofeedback Training Improves the Dual-Task Performance Ability in Stroke Patients, Young-Shin Lee, Sea-Hyun Bae, Sung-Hee Lee and Kyung-Yoon Kim, Tohoku J. Exp. Med., 2015, 236, 81-88. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25985858

Abstract:

Owing to the reduced capacity for information processing following a stroke, patients commonly present with difficulties in performing activities of daily living that combine two or more tasks. To address this problem, in the present study, we investigated the effects of neurofeedback training on the abilities of stroke patients to perform dual motor tasks. We randomly assigned 20 patients who had sustained a stroke within the preceding 6 months to either a pseudo-neurofeedback (n = 10) or neurofeedback (n = 10) group. Both groups participated in a general exercise intervention for 8 weeks, three times a week for 30 min per session, under the same conditions. An electrode was secured to the scalp over the region of the central lobe (Cz), in compliance with the International 10-20 System. The electrode was inactive for the pseudotraining group. Participants in the neurofeedback training group received the 30-min neurofeedback training per session for reinforcing the sensorimotor rhythm. Electroencephalographic activity of the two groups was compared. In addition, selected parameters of gait (velocity, cadence [step/min], stance phase [%], and foot pressure) were analyzed using a 10-m walk test, attention-demanding task, walk task and quantified by the SmartStep system. The neurofeedback group showed significantly improved the regulation of the sensorimotor rhythm (p < 0.001) and ability to execute dual tasks (p < 0.01). Significant improvements on selected gait parameters (velocity and cadence; p < 0.05) were also observed. We thus propose that the neurofeedback training is effective to improve the dual-task performance in stroke patients.

Specific effects of EEG based neurofeedback training on memory functions in post-stroke victims, Silvia Erika Kober, Daniela Schweiger, Matthias Witte, Johanna Louise Reichert, Peter Grieshofer,
Christa Neuper, and Guilherme Wood, Kober et al. Journal of NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation (2015) 12:107 DOI 10.1186/s12984-015-0105-6 http://neuroeducation.co/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/strokeNF.pdf

Abstract
Background: Using EEG based neurofeedback (NF), the activity of the brain is modulated directly and, therefore, the cortical substrates of cognitive functions themselves. In the present study, we investigated the ability of strokepatients to control their own brain activity via NF and evaluated specific effects of different NF protocols on cognition, in particular recovery of memory.
Methods: N = 17 stroke patients received up to ten sessions of either SMR (N = 11, 12–15 Hz) or Upper Alpha (N = 6, e.g. 10–12 Hz) NF training. N = 7 stroke patients received treatment as usual as control condition. Furthermore, N = 40 healthy controls performed NF training as well. To evaluate the NF training outcome, a test battery assessing different cognitive functions was performed before and after NF training.
Results: About 70 % of both patients and controls achieved distinct gains in NF performance leading to improvements in verbal short- and long-term memory, independent of the used NF protocol. The SMR patient group showed specific improvements in visuo-spatial short-term memory performance, whereas the Upper Alpha patient group specifically improved their working memory performance. NF training effects were even stronger than effects of traditional cognitive training methods in stroke patients. NF training showed no effects on other cognitive functions than memory.
Conclusions: Post-stroke victims with memory deficits could benefit from NF training as much as healthy controls. The used NF training protocols (SMR, Upper Alpha) had specific as well as unspecific effects on memory. Hence, NF might offer an effective cognitive rehabilitation tool improving memory deficits of stroke survivors.