Randomized controlled trial of neurofeedback mindfulness meditation as a practice for migraine management
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Recent studies indicate that mindfulness meditation may be beneficial for migraine symptoms; yet the potential of neurofeedback mindfulness meditation (NM) remains unexplored.
PURPOSE
This randomized controlled trial investigates the efficacy of NM compared to a controlled attention task for managing migraine.
METHODS
101 adults with migraine participated in the study, wearing EEG headbands and engaging in 10-minute daily sessions of either NM (n = 49) or an audiobook listening task (n = 52) for eight weeks. While EEG raw data was collected for all participants, only the NM group had real-time access to their EEG neurofeedback. We assessed migraine characteristics (disability and severity), headache management self-efficacy, and psychiatric symptoms (anxiety and depression) before and after the intervention.
RESULTS
Data from 61 participants who completed the full 8-week intervention were analyzed. Improvements in headache disability, severity, and anxiety were observed in both NM (n = 34) and control (n = 27) groups; however, between-group comparisons were inconclusive and minimal (DiD 95 % CIs crossing zero). Only headache management self-efficacy showed a statistically significant between-group improvement showing greater improvement in headache management self-efficacy compared to the control group (F(1,59) = 4.56, p 0.05).
CONCLUSION
The findings indicate that neurofeedback mindfulness meditation enhances headache management self-efficacy, yet larger trials…
How strong is the evidence?
Evidence Hub reads this as a randomized trial, done in people. Its evidence level is 2 of 5 (High · randomized trial). Randomized trials of a reasonable size are the strongest single-study design. Reported size: 101 participants or records.
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