LORETA Z-Score Neurofeedback and Dot-Probe Cognitive Rehabilitation for Reducing Addiction Severity in Patients with Opioid Use Disorder Receiving Methadone Maintenance Treatment: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial
Alireza Faridi, Farhad Taremian, Roghayeh Najafi-Dehjalali, Robert W ThatcherBackground
Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) is a persistent and challenging condition often treated with Methadone Maintenance Therapy (MMT). However, additional interventions may enhance treatment outcomes. This study investigates the comparison of Low-Resolution Electromagnetic Tomography Z Score Neurofeedback (LZNFB) with Dot-Probe Cognitive Rehabilitation (DPCR) in reducing the Addiction Severity Index (ASI) in opioid addicts.
Methods
In this randomized controlled clinical trial with a pre-test, post-test and follow-up design, 30 men with OUD under MMT were randomly assigned into three groups: LZNFB, DPCR, and control (MMT alone). The LZNFB group underwent 20 sessions of LZNFB, while the DPCR group received 15 individual sessions over two weeks using the dot-probe task. The control group continued with MMT alone. ASI scores were assessed at baseline, post-intervention, and during follow-up.
Results
The results indicate that both interventions showed greater numerical improvement in ASI scores, with LZNFB, particularly in improving employment and support, family/social status, psychiatric status, and drug use sub-components.
Conclusion
The findings preliminarily suggest that within-group improvements were observed following LZNFB and DPCR interventions. However, given the pilot nature of this study and the lack of robust between-group interaction analysis, these results should be interpreted with caution. Further fully powered studies with sham controls are required to confirm comparative efficacy.