Vision Training with Neurofeedback

Summary description of the study

Visual field deficits are a common consequence of acquired brain injuries and affect people of all ages. These visual problems make daily life more challenging – for example, when reading, driving, or moving safely. However, there is currently no effective therapy to improve visual field deficits. Previous training methods have focused on maximizing brain activity during a task. However, new findings show that the best performance is achieved when the brain is already in a state of high communication before the task. Our research shows that people can learn to enhance communication between brain regions through neurofeedback. Studies have shown that neurofeedback can help people after a stroke: it improves the collaboration of brain areas important for movement – and can thus help to increase mobility. Building on these results, this study investigates whether EEG neurofeedback can support the visual center in the brain to improve vision in patients with chronic visual field deficits. The main goal of the study is to evaluate the effectiveness of neurofeedback in improving visual field deficits. More specifically, we examine the development of visual ability (expansion of the visual field, contrast sensitivity). The neurofeedback method has already been studied with healthy participants at Inselspital Bern, but it is not yet approved in Switzerland for the treatment of visual field deficits. This study aims to show whether neurofeedback can improve visual ability in patients with chronic visual field deficits.

(BASEC)

Intervention under investigation

This study investigates how EEG neurofeedback works. Electrodes on the scalp measure brain activity, and participants receive immediate feedback – in the form of sounds. The sounds indicate how well they succeed in activating certain areas of the brain. The goal is to improve collaboration between the visual areas of the brain to promote vision. Additionally, all participants undergo a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan. This helps us to fine-tune the neurofeedback to the brain more accurately.

(BASEC)

Disease under investigation

Visual field deficits after stroke

(BASEC)

Sponsor

Adrian Guggisberg Service de Neurorééducation, Hôpitaux Universitaires de Genève

(BASEC)

Name of the authorising ethics committee (for multicentre studies, only the lead committee)

Ethics Committee Geneva

(BASEC)

Date of authorisation

30.09.2025

(BASEC)

Results of the trial