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April 23, 2008
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Playing a video game called
‘Space Race’ that requires nothing more than brainpower
to make rockets on a computer screen move forward is more than just
fun and games. A University of Missouri researcher is using video
games to see if the brainwaves of children with autism can be ‘retrained’
to improve focus and concentration.
“We are trying to awaken their brains.
Often children with autism disconnect and we want to use neurofeedback
to teach them how it feels to pay attention and be more alert. We
want to teach them to regulate their own brain function,”
said Guy McCormack, chair of the occupational therapy and occupational
science department in the MU School of Health Professions. “The
ultimate goal is to lay down new neural pathways and, hopefully,
see changes in focus and attention span, social interaction, improved
sleep, and appetite.”
Neurofeedback is a way of observing how the brain
works from moment to moment. While the children play the video games,
their concentration and focus are rewarded by movements on the screen
and special sounds. If attention wanes, the rocket on the screen
slows, sounds stop and the color changes until more attention is
given to the image. As this occurs, researches watch another screen
that monitors brainwave activity. The brainwave activity is measured
by placing sensors on the scalp.
“The more neurofeedback training given
to a child with autism, the more often the correct brain pathways
are used and the stronger they become. It’s like a ‘tune-up’
for a brain that is out of sync,” McCormack said. “The
brain has a lot of plasticity and, as children continue this training,
it becomes engrained and spills into other parts of their lives.”
Neurofeedback technology was designed by NASA for
flight simulations. It also is used to help high-powered executives
achieve peak performance and to help athletes train their brains
to ‘get into a zone.’
“The aim of neurofeedback is to enable
children to consciously control their brainwave activity by being
rewarded for their ability to focus,” McCormack said. “Neurofeedback
can be compared to physical conditioning for the brain.”
McCormack says a body of evidence already exists
that has found the use of neurofeedback training helps with other
neurological disorders such as traumatic brain injuries, strokes,
seizures, depression, anxiety disorders, alcoholism and premenstrual
syndrome.
The Sinquefield Charitable Foundation gave $213,511
to fund McCormack’s study of neurofeedback for treatment of
autism. The study is being conducted at the MU Thompson Center for
Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders.
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