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Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2022 Sep;26(11):1492-1506.
doi: 10.1177/10870547211063645. Epub 2022 Jan 16.

Immediate and Sustained Effects of Neurofeedback and Working Memory Training on Cognitive Functions in Children and Adolescents with ADHD: A Multi-Arm Pragmatic Randomized Controlled Trial

John Hasslinger  1   2 , Ulf Jonsson  1   2   3 , Sven Bölte  1   2   4
Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

Immediate and Sustained Effects of Neurofeedback and Working Memory Training on Cognitive Functions in Children and Adolescents with ADHD: A Multi-Arm Pragmatic Randomized Controlled Trial

John Hasslinger et al. J Atten Disord. 2022 Sep.

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate the effects of neurocognitive training methods on targeted cognitive functions in children and adolescent with ADHD.

Method: A pragmatic four-arm randomized controlled trial compared two types of neurofeedback (Slow Cortical Potential and Live Z-score) and Working-memory training (WMT) with treatment as usual. N = 202 participants with ADHD aged 9 to 17 years were included. A battery of cognitive function tests was completed pretreatment, posttreatment, and after 6-months.

Results: The effects of WMT on spatial and verbal working-memory were superior to neurofeedback and treatment as usual at posttreatment, but only partially sustained at follow-up. No other consistent effects were observed. We found no clear indications that effects were moderated by ADHD presentation, ongoing medication, age, or sex.

Conclusion: The sustained effects of neurocognitive training on cognitive functioning in children and adolescents with ADHD may be limited. Future research should focus on more personalized forms of neurocognitive training.

Keywords: ADHD; biofeedback; cognition; intervention; live Z-score; neurofeedback; neuropsychology; slow cortical potentials; training; working memory training.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of Conflicting Interests: The author(s) declared the following potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: Bölte discloses that he has in the last 3 years acted as an author, consultant or lecturer for Medice and Roche. He receives royalties for textbooks and diagnostic tools from Hogrefe, Kohlhammer and UTB. Bölte is shareholder in SB Education/Psychological Consulting AB and NeuroSupportSolutions International AB.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
CONSORT flow diagram. Note. T = tapping; TA = time anticipation; SWM = spartial working memory task; CPT = continuous performance task; DS = digit span; LNS = letter-number-sequencing.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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