Closed-Loop Neurofeedback Targeting the Left Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex for Cardiac Autonomic Modulation in Coronary Artery Disease With Anxiety

The goal of this clinical trial is to test whether closed-loop fNIRS-BCI neurofeedback(NF) targeting the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex(DLPFC) can reduce cardiac autonomic arousal, indexed by baseline-corrected heart rate(HR) under cold-induced pain stress, in adults with stable coronary heart disease(CHD) and comorbid anxiety. The main questions it aims to answer are: Does real left DLPFC neurofeedback, compared with sham neurofeedback, lead to a greater reduction in baseline-corrected HR during the cold-induced pain stimulation window? Does real neurofeedback produce stronger volitional upregulation of left DLPFC activation and higher inter-hemispheric synchronisation between left and right DLPFC than sham neurofeedback? Are changes in baseline-corrected HR statistically associated with, and partly mediated by, changes in left DLPFC activation or DLPFC inter-hemispheric synchronisation? What adverse events(AEs) occur during adaptive training and the formal experimental session, and do AE rates differ between the two groups? Researchers will compare a real neurofeedback group with a sham neurofeedback group to determine whether targeting the left DLPFC via closed-loop fNIRS-BCI yields superior modulation of cardiac autonomic responses and prefrontal activation patterns in CHD patients with anxiety. Participants will: undergo cardiac and psychiatric screening to confirm stable CHD, DSM-5 anxiety disorder, and other eligibility criteria; attend three adaptive training sessions(days 1-3) with fNIRS-BCI neurofeedback targeting the left DLPFC, combined with slow-wave auditory stimulation and mild cold-water exposure, while ECG is recorded; on day 4, complete one formal experimental session consisting of 15 blocks of cold-induced pain stimulation and slow-wave auditory stimulation, with simultaneous fNIRS and ECG recording, receiving either real or sham left DLPFC neurofeedback according to randomisation, and continuous monitoring for adverse events.

NCT Number	NCT07244484
Lead Sponsor	Shenyang Medical College Collaborators: The Second Hospital of Shenyang Medical College
Conditions	Coronary Heart Disease (CHD), Anxiety Disorders
Enrollment	56 participants
Start Date	2025-11-23
Primary Completion	2026-05-23 (estimated)
Study Completion	2026-05-30 (estimated)
Updated on ClinicalTrials.gov	2026-04-22