See how your therapist can set this up for you even without the brain imaging.
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/253635.php
Training human volunteers to control their own brain activity in precise
areas of the brain can enhance fundamental aspects of their visual
sensitivity, according to a new study. This non-invasive 'neurofeedback'
approach could one day be used to improve brain function in patients
with abnormal patterns of activity, for example stroke patients.
Researchers at the Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging at UCL used
non-invasive, real-time brain imaging that enabled participants to watch
their own brain activity on a screen, a technique known as
neurofeedback. During the training phase, they were asked to try and
increase activity in the area of the brain that processes visual
information, the visual cortex, by imagining images and observing how
their brains responded.
After the training phase, the participants' visual perception was tested
using a new task that required them to detect very subtle changes in
the contrast of an image. When they were asked to repeat this task
whilst clamping brain activity in the visual cortex at high levels, they
found that those who had successfully learned to control their brain
activity could improve their ability to detect even very small changes
in contrast.
This improved performance was only observed when participants were exercising control of their brain activity.
Lead author Dr Frank Scharnowski, who is now based at the University of
Geneva, explains: "We've shown that we can train people to manipulate
their own brain activity and improve their visual sensitivity, without
surgery and without drugs."
In the past, researchers have used recordings of electrical activity in
the brain to train people to get better at various tasks, including
decreased reaction times, altered emotional responses and even enhanced
musical performance. In this study, the researchers used functional
magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to provide the volunteers with
real-time feedback on brain activity. The advantage of this technique is
that you can see exactly where in the brain the training is having an
effect, so you can target the training to particular brain areas that
are responsible for specific tasks.
"The next step is to test this approach in the clinic to see whether we
can offer any benefit to patients, for example to stroke patients who
may have problems with perception, even though there is no damage to
their vision," adds Dr Scharnowski.
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