Effect of heart rate variability biofeedback on extinction learning in healthy individuals and individuals with panic disorder and agoraphobia

心率变异性生物反馈对健康个体以及患有恐慌症和广场恐惧症的个体的消退学习的影响

• 批准号: 286832222
• 负责人: Professor Dr. Alfons Hamm
• 金额: --
• 依托单位: Abteilung Klinische Psychologie/Psychotherapie
• 依托单位国家: 德国
• 项目类别: Research Grants
• 财政年份: 2015
• 资助国家: 德国
• 起止时间: 2014-12-31 至 2022-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://gepris.dfg.de/gepris/projekt/286832222?language=en
• 关键词: Effect; heart; rate; variability; biofeedback

Exposure therapy, which involves confronting the feared stimulus or situation, is a well-established and effective treatment for pathological anxiety. However, high dropout and non-responder rates call for the investigation of individual differences that mediate the treatment response and its underlying mechanisms. We recently demonstrated that low levels of vagally mediated heart rate variability (vmHRV) in patients with panic disorder and agoraphobia predict dropout from and residual symptoms after exposure treatment. Moreover, we found in several studies that individuals with low levels of vmHRV show deficits in extinction learning which serves as a laboratory model for exposure therapy. With the current project we, therefore, want to test the assumption that HRV biofeedback training has a facilitating effect on extinction learning. First, we want to investigate this research question in a larger sample of healthy individuals to test whether HRV biofeedback effects extinction learning particularly in individuals with low levels of vmHRV, thus, providing the basis for an individualized indication. In addition, we want to investigate the effect of HRV biofeedback in individuals with panic disorder and agoraphobia since this patient population shows generally lower levels of vmHRV and also deficits in extinction learning. Earlier findings, predominantly in non-clinical populations, show that HRV biofeedback effectively reduces stress and anxiety. Thus, the current state of research raises the question whether HRV biofeedback training in individuals with panic disorder and agoraphobia facilitates extinction learning and reduces pathological anxiety levels.

暴露疗法涉及面对恐惧的刺激或情况，是一种行之有效的治疗病理性焦虑的方法。然而，高辍学率和无反应率要求调查介导治疗反应及其潜在机制的个体差异。我们最近证明，恐慌症和广场恐惧症患者的迷走神经介导的心率变异性（vmHRV）水平较低，可以预测暴露治疗后的退出和残留症状。此外，我们在几项研究中发现，vmHRV 水平较低的个体在消退学习方面表现出缺陷，而消退学习可作为暴露疗法的实验室模型。因此，在当前的项目中，我们想要测试 HRV 生物反馈训练对消退学习有促进作用的假设。首先，我们希望在更大的健康个体样本中调查这一研究问题，以测试 HRV 生物反馈是否会影响消退学习，特别是对于 vmHRV 水平较低的个体，从而为个体化指示提供基础。此外，我们想要研究 HRV 生物反馈对惊恐障碍和广场恐惧症患者的影响，因为这些患者群体的 vmHRV 水平普遍较低，并且在消退学习方面也存在缺陷。早期的研究结果（主要是在非临床人群中）表明，HRV 生物反馈可以有效减轻压力和焦虑。因此，目前的研究状况提出了这样一个问题：对惊恐障碍和广场恐惧症患者进行 HRV 生物反馈训练是否可以促进消退学习并降低病理性焦虑水平。