Biofeedback in medicine with a focus on cancer rehabilitation

Excerpt

The method of biofeedback is known to be an effective instrumental psychophysiological method with the power to enhance self-competence in healthy people but also in patients suffering from different diseases. For some medical indications it has been shown to be an effective additive tool within state of the art treatment. By using a biofeedback apparatus and with the help of a so-called biofeedback therapist clients and patients are able to gain self-competence, the principle effective is self-efficacy. Such a biofeedback system is able to transform (disturbed) bodily functions into electrical signals and so-called parameters and by giving feedback of these biological signals to help the patient to get an insight into his/her body and to gain awareness about these disturbed bodily functions. Typical parameters used are skin conductance level and response, peripheral temperature, heart rate and different pulse qualities, heart rate variability, electromyography, electroencephalography, and hem-encephalography. With the feedback of these biosignals and by using skills given by the biofeedback therapist, the patient becomes able to change deficits in bodily functions according to a treatment goal [1‐3]. …