Investigating the Efficacy of Theta Binaural Beat on the Absolute Power of Theta Activity in Primary Insomniacs.

INTRODUCTION: The brain waves pattern in primary insomniacs is different from healthy subjects. Studies have shown that binaural beats can alter the pattern of brain waves in healthy individuals; however, the efficacy of binaural beats in altering the pattern of brain waves in primary insomniacs has not yet been investigated. This study aims to evaluate the efficacy of theta binaural beat on the absolute power of theta activity in primary insomniacs. METHODS: This study was a randomized clinical trial with experimental and control groups. The primary insomniacs received theta binaural beats in the experimental group while the control group received white noise. Their brain waves were recorded by electroencephalogram for 25 min; the first 5 min was without stimulus (first block), the next was followed by 15 min of receiving stimulus (binaural beat or white noise), and the last 5 min without stimulus (fifth block). The Matlab software, version R2019a, EEGLAB toolbox, and SPSS software, version 24 were used to analyze the data. RESULTS: The absolute power of theta activity in the experimental group was significantly higher in the last block compared to the first block in all brain lobes (P<0.05). The largest changes in theta activity were in the temporal and parietal lobes, and the last one was in the prefrontal lobe. In the control group, none of the brain lobes showed significant differences in the last block compared to the first block. CONCLUSION: Theta binaural beat can alter the absolute power of theta activity in primary insomniacs. The implications of the study are discussed. HIGHLIGHTS: Theta binaural beat can be effective in changing the brain wave pattern of primary insomniacs.The amount of changes in the absolute power of theta wave activity in different brain regions of primary insomniacs under the influence of theta binaural beat was not the same.The effect of theta binaural beat on temporal and parietal was higher than other brain areas, whereas the prefrontal and occipital had the least significant changes in the absolute power of theta activity. PLAIN LANGUAGE SUMMARY: Different people experience different brain waves based on the type of activity they do in their life at the same time. This brain wave pattern can change especially after a person decides to go to bed and experience an ideal sleep. Theta brain wave, which plays a role in important activities such as memory, deep relaxation, and day-dreaming, helps a person to change from wakefulness to sleep faster. Research literature has shown that people with insomnia have different brain waves than healthy people, especially in the theta brain wave. Accordingly, many interventions have been carried out to improve the sleep quality of these people and change their brain waves. It has been shown that binaural beat as a low-cost method based on sound waves, can change the brain waves of healthy people, but so far, no study has been done to investigate the effect of these sound waves (especially theta waves) on the brain waves of people with insomnia. The current study was conducted with the aim of investigating a non-invasive method (theta binaural beat) to improve the brain wave pattern of people suffering from insomnia. The findings of this study showed that theta binaural beat can be effective in changing the brain wave pattern of people suffering from insomnia.