Brain training may fight off sleepiness
NCT ID NCT04591314
First seen Jun 24, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 2 times
Summary
This study tested whether a technique called neurofeedback can help people stay awake and think clearly after a full night of sleep deprivation. Twenty-two healthy adults completed 8 sessions of neurofeedback, where they learned to control their brain activity in real time. The goal was to see if this training could improve their ability to stay awake and perform cognitive tasks when sleep-deprived.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- neurofeedback training
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could point toward a non-drug way to reduce the impact of sleep loss on alertness and thinking.
- What could go wrong
- This is a very small, early study in healthy young adults, so results may not apply to real-world sleep deprivation or to people with sleep disorders. The training requires many sessions and may not be practical for everyone.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
-
Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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22 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Jan 2023
- Finished
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May 2024
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 to 35 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Accepted
You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Male or female aged between 18 and 35 years old, * Healthy subject, no pathology reported at the interview * Absence of EDS complaints (total ESS score\<11) and sleep complaints (total Insomnia Severity Indexscore \<15) * Presence of an objective EDS measured by a mean sleep latency of less than 30 minutes on the wakefulness maintenance test performed after a night of total sleep deprivation under controlled conditions (at the inclusion visit), * Motivated to carry out the program of 8 neurofeedback sessions, * Body mass index \< 25 kg/m2, * Affiliated with the social security (beneficiary or entitled person), * Having been informed and having signed an informed consent. Exclusion Criteria: * All pathologies that may induce excessive daytime sleepiness: untreated narcolepsy or idiopathic hypersomnia, untreated sleep apnea syndrome, untreated restless legs syndrome, untreated periodic leg movement syndrome, unstabilized psychiatric disorders of the characterized depressive disorder type, anxiety disorders, bipolar disorder, addictive disorders (alcohol and drugs), obesity having undergone surgical treatment for less than 3 months. * Chronic insomnia disorder * Excessive consumption of coffee, tea, or caffeinated cola type beverages (\> 5 cups/day) * All pathologies making interaction with the neurofeedback device potentially problematic: intellectual, visual, auditory or motor impairment, psychotic disorders, unstable cardio-respiratory diseases, neurological disease of the central nervous system, confusion, dementia, * Any situation or treatment modifying the EEG spectral power: psychotropic treatments, night or shift work, chrono-biological disorders interfering with the level of daytime alertness, history of cranial surgery, epilepsy, * Pregnant or breastfeeding woman, * Persons placed under the safeguard of justice, * A person participating in another research study with an exclusion period still in progress, * Person whose physical and/or psychological health is severely impaired
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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CHU de Bordeaux
Bordeaux, 33000, France
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Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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