Abstract
It remains a pertinent problem that dependent on the type of epilepsy, 20–50% of patients are not sufficiently controlled with antiepileptic medication. Alternative approaches such as behavioral treatment have therefore been explored. The behavioral research was stimulated by a famous single case study published by Efron (1975) documenting the classical conditioning of seizure depression. Reduction in seizure frequency has been reported following the application of desensitization and extinction procedures (Forster, 1969, 1972, 1977; Rockstroh & Elbert, 1990), self-control procedures implying self-perception, self-control, and relaxation (Dahl, Brorson, 1985; Dahl, Melin, & Leissner, 1988; Bühring & Weltek, 1990), biofeedback of respiratory parameters (Fried, Rubin, Carlton, & Fox, 1984), and instrumental modification of EEG spectra (Lubar, 1984; Sterman, 1984; Rockstroh, Elbert, Birbaumer, Wolf, Düchting-Roth, Reker, Daum, Lutzenberger, & Dichgans, 1993). For recent overviews, see Birbaumer, Elbert, Canavan, and Rockstroh (1990) and Elbert, Rockstroh, Canavan, Birbaumer, Lutzenberger, von Bülow, and Linden (1991).
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Birbaumer, N., Elbert, T., Canavan, A., & Rockstroh, B. (1990). Slow potentials of the cerebral cortex and behavior. Physiological Reviews, 70, 1–41.
Birbaumer, N., Elbert, T., Rockstroh, B., Daum, I., Wolf, P., & Canavan, A. (1992). Clinical-psychological treatment of epileptic seizures: A controlled study. In A. Ehlers, I. Florin, W. Fliegenbaum, & J. Margraf (Eds.), Perspectives and promises of clinical psychology, New York: Plenum Press.
Braitenberg, V. (1978). Cell assemblies in the cerebral cortex. In R. Heim & G. Palm (Eds.), Theoretical approach to complex systems (pp. 171–188 ). Berlin/Heidelberg: Springer.
Bühring, M., & Weltek, H. (1990). Entwicklung eines systematischen Anfallsunterbrechungstrainings, dargestellt anhand einer exemplarischen Fallstudie. In P. Wolf (Ed.), Epilepsie 89 (pp 216–220 ). Reinbeck: Einhom.
Caspers, H., & Speckmann, E. J. (1969). DC-potential shifts in paroxysmal states. In H. H. Jasper, A. A. Ward, & A. Pope (Eds.), Basic mechanisms of the epilepsies. Boston: Little Brown.
Caspers, H., Speckmann, E. J., & Lehmenkuehler, A. (1984). Electrogenesis of slow potentials of the brain. In T. Elbert, B. Rockstroh, W. Lutzenberger, & N. Birbaumer (Eds.), Self-regulation of the brain and behavior (pp. 25–41 ). Berlin/Heidelberg: Springer.
Chatrian, G. E., Somasundaram, M., & Tassinari, C. A. (1968). DC-changes recorded transcranially during “typical” 3/sec spike and wave discharges in men. Epilepsia, 9, 185–209.
Dahl, J., Brorson, L. L. (1985). Effects of a broad-spectrum behavior modification treatment program on children with refractory epileptic seizures. Epilepsie, 26, 303–309.
Dahl, J., Melin, L., & Leissner, P. (1988). Effects of a behavioral intervention on epileptic seizure behavior and paroxysmal activity: A systematic replication of three cases of children with intractable epilepsy. Epilepsie, 29, 172–193.
Daum, I., Rockstroh, B., Birbaumer, N., Elbert, T., Canavan, A., & Lutzenberger, W. (1993). Behavioural treatment of slow cortical potentials in intractable epilepsy: Neuropsychological predictors of outcome. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry, 56, 94–97.
Efron, R. (1975). Conditioned inhibition of uncinate fits. Brain, 80, 251–260.
Elbert, T. (1991). Slow cortical potentials reflect the regulation of cortical excitability. In W. C. McCallum (Ed.), Slow potentials in the human brain. New York: Plenum Press.
Elbert, T, & Rockstroh, B. (1987). Threshold regulation—a key to the understanding of the combined dynamics of EEG and event-related potentials. Journal of Psychophysiology, 1, 317–333.
Elbert, T., Birbaumer, N., Lutzenberger, W, & Rockstroh, B. (1979). Biofeedback of slow cortical potentials: Self-regulation of central autonomic patterns. In N. Birbaumer & H. D. Kimmel (Eds.), Biofeedback and self-regulation (pp. 321–342 ). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Elbert, T., Rockstroh, B., Lutzenberger, W, & Birbaumer, N. (1980). Biofeedback of slow cortical potentials. Journal of Electroencephalography & Clinical Neurophysiology, 48, 293–301.
Elbert, T, Rockstroh, B., Lutzenberger, W, & Birbaumer, N. (Eds.) (1984). Self-regulation of the brain and behavior. Berlin/Heidelberg: Springer.
Elbert, T., Birbaumer, N., & Rockstroh, B. (1990). Regulation of slow cortical potentials (SCP) in epileptic patients. In C. H. M. Brunia, A. W. K. Gaillard, & A. Kok (Eds.), Psycho-physiological brain research (pp. 231–235 ). Tilburg: University Press.
Elbert, T, Rockstroh, B., Canavan, A., Birbaumer, N., Lutzenberger, W, von Bülow, I., & Linden, A. (1991). Self-regulation of slow cortical potentials and its role in epileptogenesis. In J. G. Carlson & R. Seifert (Eds.), International perspectives on self-regulation and health. New York: Plenum Press.
Forster, F. M. (1969). Conditioned reflexes and sensory-evoked epilepsy: The nature of the therapeutic process. Conditional Reflex, 4, 103–114.
Forster, E. M. (1972). The classification and conditioning treatment of the reflex epilepsies. International Journal of Neurology, 9, 73–86.
Forster, F. M. (1977). Reflex epilepsy, behavioral therapy, and conditional reflexes. Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas.
Fried, R., Rubin, S. R., Carlton, R. M., & Fox, M. C. (1984). Behavioral control of intractable idiopathic seizures: I. Self-regulation of end-tidal carbon dioxide. Psychosomatic Medicine, 46, 315–332.
Lubar, J. (1984). Application of operant conditioning of the EEG for the management of epileptic seizures. In T. Elbert, B. Rockstroh, W. Lutzenberger, & N. Birbaumer (Eds.), Self-regulation of the brain and behavior (pp. 107–125 ). Berlin/Heidelberg: Springer.
Penry, K., & Rahel, R. E. (1986). Epilepsy: Diagnosis, management, quality of life. New York: Raven Press.
Rockstroh, B. (1990). Hyperventilation-induced DC-potentials in human subjects. Epilepsy Research, 7, 146–154.
Rockstroh, B., & Elbert, T. (1990). On the regulation of excitability in cerebral cortex—A bridge between EEG and attention? In H. G. Geissler, M. Muller, & W. Prinz (Eds.), Psychophysical explorations of mental structures (pp. 323–332 ). Gottingen: Hogrefe.
Rockstroh, B., Elbert, T., Lutzenberger, W, & Birbaumer, N. (1984b). Operant control of slow brain potentials: A tool in the investigation of the potential’s meaning and its relation to attentive dysfunction. In T. Elbert, B. Rockstroh, W. Lutzenberger, & N. Birbaumer (Eds.), Self-regulation of the brain and behavior (pp. 227–239 ). Berlin/Heidelberg: Springer.
Rockstroh, B., Elbert, T., Lutzenberger, W, Altenmuller, E., Diener, H. C., & Birbaumer, N. (1987). Effects of the anticonvulsant carbamazepine on event-related brain potentials in humans. In R. Nodar, C. Barber, & T Blum (Eds.), Evoked potentials III (pp. 361–369 ). London: Butterworths.
Rockstroh, B., Elbert, T, Canavan, A., Lutzenberger, W, & Birbaumer, N. (1989). Slow cortical potentials and behavior. 2nd ed. Munich: Urban & Schwarzenberg.
Rockstroh, B., Elbert, T., Lutzenberger, W, & Altenmuller, E. (1991). Effects of the anticonvulsant benzodiazepine Clonazepam on event-related potentials in human subjects. Journal of Electroencephalography and Clinical Neurophysiology, 78, 142–149.
Rockstroh, B., Elbert, T., Birbaumer, N., Wolf, P., Düchting-Roth, A., Reker, M., Daum, I., Lutzenberger, W, & Dichgans, J. (1993). Cortical self-regulation in patients with epilepsies. Epilepsy Research, 14, 63–72.
Sterman, M. B. (1984). The role of sensorimotor rhythmic EEG activity in the etiology and treatment of generalized motor seizures. In T. Elbert, B. Rockstroh, W. Lutzenberger, & N. Birbaumer (Eds.), Self-regulation of the brain and behavior (pp. 95–106 ). Berlin/ Heidelberg: Springer.
Sterman, M. B., Lantz, D., Bruckler, R. M., & Kovalesky, R. A. (1981). Effects of sensorimotor EEG normalization feedback training on seizure rate in poorly controlled epileptics. Proceedings of the Biofeedback Society of America, 12th Annual Meeting, Louisville.
von Bülow, I., Elbert, T., Rockstroh, B., Lutzenberger, W, Canavan, A., & Birbaumer, N. (1989). Effects of hyperventilation on EEG frequency and slow cortical potentials in relation to an anticonvulsant and epilepsy. Psychophysiology, 3, 147–154.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1994 Springer Science+Business Media New York
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Birbaumer, N. et al. (1994). Biofeedback of Slow Cortical Potentials in Epilepsy. In: Carlson, J.G., Seifert, A.R., Birbaumer, N. (eds) Clinical Applied Psychophysiology. The Plenum Series in Behavioral Psychophysiology and Medicine. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4757-9703-9_3
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4757-9703-9_3
Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA
Print ISBN: 978-1-4757-9705-3
Online ISBN: 978-1-4757-9703-9
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive