SynthesisPsychological medicine2022
Efficacy of bio- and neurofeedback for depression: a meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Psychological medicine, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to 2 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 46 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neurofeedback Training to Improve Prefrontal Functioning in Older Adults With Subclinical Depression and Anxiety: a Randomised Control Trial
Developing an EEG-fNIRS Neurofeedback Application for Brain Training for Autistic Children
Who cites it
46 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 86 citations in OpenAlex.
- Self-navigating the "Island of Reil": a systematic review of real-time fMRI neurofeedback training of insula activity.Translational psychiatry · 2025Pooled it
- Systematic review and meta-analysis of the relationships between real-time neurofeedback training parameters and acquisition of neural modulation.Frontiers in human neuroscience · 2025Pooled it
- Frontostriatal circuitry as a target for fMRI-based neurofeedback interventions: A systematic review.Frontiers in human neuroscience · 2022Pooled it
- The Impact of Alpha-Neurofeedback Training on Gastric Slow Wave Activity and Heart Rate Variability in Humans.Neurogastroenterology and motility · 2025Trial
- Changes in Negative Emotions Across Five Weeks of HRV Biofeedback Intervention were Mediated by Changes in Resting Heart Rate Variability.Applied psychophysiology and biofeedback · 2025Trial
- Heart Rate Variability Biofeedback Training Reduces Early Maternal Stress, Anxiety, and Depression in Women Undergoing Cesarean Delivery: A Randomized Controlled Trial.Applied psychophysiology and biofeedback · 2024Trial
- Whole-brain mechanism of neurofeedback therapy: predictive modeling of neurofeedback outcomes on repetitive negative thinking in depression.Translational psychiatry · 2024Trial
- The Physiological and Clinical-Behavioral Effects of Heart Rate Variability Biofeedback in Adolescents with Autism: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.Applied psychophysiology and biofeedback · 2024Trial
- Clinical and neurophysiological effects of bilateral repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation and EEG-guided neurofeedback in Parkinson's disease: a randomized, four-arm controlled trial.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitation · 2024Trial
- Mindfulness-based real-time fMRI neurofeedback: a randomized controlled trial to optimize dosing for depressed adolescents.BMC psychiatry · 2023Trial
- Targeting the dopaminergic midbrain with precision 7-Tesla biofeedback training in depression: A proof-of-principle randomized controlled trial.Molecular psychiatry · 2026Article
- Examining the Integration of Biofeedback Treatment in Inpatient Mental Health Care, Specialized in Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy: A Mixed Methods Study.Applied psychophysiology and biofeedback · 2026Article
- Comparisons of Virtual Reality-based vs. Conventional Biofeedback for Panic Symptoms: A Randomized Controlled Study.Clinical psychopharmacology and neuroscience : the official scientific journal of the Korean College of Neuropsychopharmacology · 2026Article
- Stress reactivity of the autonomic nervous system in youth with and without major depressive disorder.European child & adolescent psychiatry · 2026Article
- EEG Neurofeedback for Major Depressive Disorder: A Scoping Review.Alpha psychiatry · 2026Review
- A systematic review on mindfulness-based immersive interventions in depressive disorders.Npj mental health research · 2026Review
- Smart Devices and Multimodal Systems for Mental Health Monitoring: From Theory to Application.Bioengineering (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Effects of Transcutaneous Vagus Nerve Stimulation, Neurofeedback, and their Combination on Cortisol, Anxiety, and Depression Subtypes in Non-Clinical Adults.Applied psychophysiology and biofeedback · 2026Article
- Quantitative electroencephalography as a next-generation tool in neurodiagnostics: significance, clinical applications, and practical interpretative frameworks.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2026Review
- Neurofeedback in Major Depression.Advances in experimental medicine and biology · 2026Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors at 5 institutions in 4 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundFor many years, biofeedback and neurofeedback have been implemented in the treatment of depression. However, the effectiveness of these techniques on depressive symptomatology is still controversial. Hence, we conducted a meta-analysis of studies extracted from PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science and Embase.
methodsTwo different strings were considered for each of the two objectives of the study: A first group comprising studies patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) and a second group including studies targeting depressive symptomatology reduction in other mental or medical conditions.
resultsIn the first group of studies including patients with MDD, the within-group analyses yielded an effect size of Hedges' g = 0.717, while the between-group analysis an effect size of Hedges' g = 1.050. Moderator analyses indicate that treatment efficacy is only significant when accounting for experimental design, in favor of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in comparison to non RCTs, whereas the type of neurofeedback, trial design, year of publication, number of sessions, age, sex and quality of study did not influence treatment efficacy. In the second group of studies, a small but significant effect between groups was found (Hedges' g = 0.303) in favor of bio- and neurofeedback against control groups. Moderator analyses revealed that treatment efficacy was not moderated by any of the sociodemographic and clinical variables.
conclusionsHeart rate variability (HRV) biofeedback and neurofeedback are associated with a reduction in self-reported depression. Despite the fact that the field has still a large room for improvement in terms of research quality, the results presented in this study suggests that both modalities may become relevant complementary strategies for the treatment of MDD and depressive symptomatology in the coming years.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What Socratic holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.