Are consumer-level transcranial stimulator's a scam?

[OldBoy]

Hey, everyone
Everyone has been trying to capitalize on the success of hospital-performed electroconvulsive therapy for depression. In ECT, a person is purposely thrown into a controlled seizure. Long term positive results are in the 80-85% range for depression that doesn't respond to any other treatment. It's been nearly 5 decades since inventors began trying to duplicate the success of ECT by stimulating the brain from the outside of the head. There has been some success with TMS (transcranial magnetic stimulation), but that requires a huge unit being applied to your head, as you sit through sessions as long as 120 minutes long. There are home units that use sound waves in place of magnetic stimulation. As far as I know, they are all snake oil. Has anyone had any positive experiences with any of them?

Hello Rafterman,

My Psychiatrist of 15 years, who I'm now no longer able to see due to "funemployment", had a Neurofeedback, or EEG Biofeedback unit installed in his office earlier this year.  It looks like a dental chair with a helmet attached (the helmet has electrodes inside it).  I was curious about it, and made the mistake of asking a question, whereupon I received a 45-minute sales pitch that ate up most of my 1-hour appointment.  It left me unimpressed, but per the Psychiatrist (and who knows if he was telling the truth or trying to sign up another patient for a 6-month regimen on the device).

From the brochure:

Neurofeedback, or EEG Biofeedback, is a useful adjunct tool being used in the treatment of ADD/ADHD, depression, anxiety, and other mental health issues. Neurofeedback is a learning strategy where a person is taught to alter their brain waves or electrical activity so that new brain wave patterns are produced that are more “in line” with those seen in individuals who do not have a mental health diagnosis or disability.


Neurofeedback and Therapeutic Applications
Use of neuro or EEG biofeedback has been extensively researched with findings freely shared with the professional community. Clinical reports show that neurofeedback has been effective as a therapeutic tool with:

• ADHD/ADD
  
• Addiction disorders
  
• Anxiety disorders
  
• Depression
  
• Sleep disorders
  
• Numerous other mental health issues and concerns that affect personal happiness, work, family, or social relations
  

Common Procedure for Neurofeedback
The use of EEG biofeedback or neurofeedback is painless and non-invasive. Sensors are placed on the scalp and on both ears. Brain waves are measured with use of an amplifier and a computer-based instrument that processes the brain activity and then provides the proper feedback. As the brain responds to the training and cues given, new learning takes place where new brain wave patterns are established in response to the stimuli given.

Successful Outcomes of Neuro or Biofeedback
The brain is able to use the training and feedback to make adjustments and improve its own performance, with the ultimate goal of changing the brain patterns to those comparable of those without a mental health disturbance. Training is a learning process and results occurs gradually. Progress may be seen or felt in 10 sessions, with more severe cases taking 40 or more training sessions.

I will admit that my skepticism is probably rooted in my having been medicated for seventeen years, but none of the other patients in the Doctor's office who I spoke to in the waiting room had availed themselves of the device, and had no plans to.  This may, of course, be an artifact of people my age being unwilling to accept change (especially people who have been on medications for a very long time), but I honestly have not been able to find convincing good reviews of this sort of treatment anywhere other than at manufacturer's sites.

All of this is purely anecdotal of course.  Neurofeedback may indeed be a miracle cure, but for those of us who have managed to control our symptoms with medication for a great many years, the prospect of (quite serious) withdrawal from the medication, especially with a Doctor who scorns the Ashton method or any other sort of tapering protocol is disconcerting.