Pre-sleep audio-visual alpha stimulation for pain and sleep (Halpin 2023)
Self-reported sleep improved (total sleep time +29 min, p = .0033), but objective actigraphy showed no significant change. The study had no control group.
The question: Does pre-sleep 10 Hz audio-visual stimulation improve sleep in people with chronic pain and sleep disturbance?
| Type of study | Pilot study |
|---|---|
| Who took part | 28 people with chronic pain and sleep disturbance |
| What was done | A 1-week baseline followed by 4 weeks of pre-sleep alpha (about 10 Hz) audio-visual entrainment (AVE). Sleep was tracked by diary and actigraphy. |
| How much weight it carries | Preliminary |
What it found
- Self-reported total sleep time rose by 29 minutes (p = .0033, d = 0.67).
- Self-reported sleep-onset latency fell by 13 minutes (p = .0043, d = 0.58) and sleep efficiency rose by 4.7% (p = .0009, d = 0.78).
- Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) scores, pain interference, and depression and anxiety scores (HADS) also improved.
- Objective actigraphy showed no significant change, so subjective and objective measures diverged.
Limits
- The design was uncontrolled, so placebo and expectation cannot be separated from any real effect.
- Improvements appeared only in self-report, not in actigraphy.
- A sham-controlled arm is needed to separate the effect of the flicker from expectation.
Where this sits
More in the library on sleep. For the wider picture, read Binaural beats for sleep.
This is our plain-language reading of the paper. It is not medical advice, and one study rarely settles a question.
Sources
- Halpin, S. J., Casson, A. J., Tang, N. K. Y., Jones, A. K. P., O'Connor, R. J., & Sivan, M. (2023). A feasibility study of pre-sleep audio and visual alpha brain entrainment for people with chronic pain and sleep disturbance. Frontiers in Pain Research, 4, 1096084. doi.org/10.3389/fpain.2023.1096084