THE COMPARATIVE EFFICACY OF TWO BIOFEEDBACK TECHNIQUES IN THE TREATMENT OF GENERALIZED ANXIETY DISORDER

The present study compared the efficacy of two most commonly used biofeedback relaxation techniques in the treatment of Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD). Forty five individuals, recruited on the basis of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-IV Text Revision criteria (DSM-IVTR - APA, 2000) were randomly assigned to three groups: Group I (n = 15) received Electromyographic (EMG) biofeedback relaxation training; Group II (n = 15) received Alpha–Electroencephalographic (EEG) biofeedback relaxation training; and Group III (n = 15) was a control group. Both EMG and EEG groups resulted in more consistent pattern of generalized relaxation changes reflected in alpha-EEG activity, frontalis-EMG activity, systolic blood pressure and Comprehensive Anxiety Test (CAT) score as compared to control group. Significant changes were also observed on comparing EMG and EEG groups. At followup, maintenance of effects was observed in both treatment groups.