Research › QEEG, Methods & Mechanisms
The Disconnection Syndrome
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Study at a glance
- Area
- QEEG, Methods & Mechanisms
- Study type
- Review & meta-analysis
- Authors
- Schummer GJ
- Journal
- Biofeedback
- Year
- 2008
- Population
- Adults
- Protocol
- QEEG-guided coherence neurofeedback
Key findings
- Conduction aphasia, from damage to the arcuate fasciculus linking Broca's and Wernicke's areas, is a classic disconnection syndrome
- Coherence training is described as able to strengthen or reduce connectivity between cortical sites
- Pilot and case studies are cited in stroke, autism, traumatic brain injury and learning disorders
- A case example reports reduced symptoms in a young man with adult-onset schizophrenia
An article tracing the disconnection syndrome, neurologist Norman Geschwind's concept of interrupted information transfer between brain regions, and its relevance to neurofeedback, especially coherence training. The author discusses hyperconnectivity and hypoconnectivity, notes that neurofeedback studies report improvement regardless of what caused the disconnection, and presents a case in which neurofeedback reduced symptoms in a young man with adult-onset schizophrenia. He expects future work to extend neurofeedback to disorders rooted in disrupted connectivity.