Real-time fMRI neurofeedback on smokers

Data acquired during real-time fMRI experiment on smokers

In previous real-time functional magnetic resonance imaging neurofeedback (rtfMRI-NF) studies on smoking craving, the focus has been on within-region activity or between-region connectivity, neglecting the potential predictive utility of broader network activity. Moreover, there is debate over the use and relative predictive power of individual-specific and group-level classifiers. This study aims to further advance rtfMRI-NF for substance use disorders by using whole-brain rtfMRI-NF to assess smoking craving-related brain patterns, evaluate the performance of group-level or individual-level classification (n = 31), and evaluate the performance of an optimized classifier across repeated neurofeedback runs. Using real-time individual-level classifiers derived from whole-brain support vector machines, we found that classification accuracy between crave and no-crave conditions and between repeated neurofeedback runs increased across repeated runs at both individual and group levels. Within the classification, individual-level accuracy was significantly greater than group-level accuracy, highlighting the potential increased utility of an individually-trained whole-brain classifier for volitional control over brain patterns to regulate smoking craving. This study provides evidence supporting the feasibility of using whole-brain rtfMRI-NF to modulate smoking craving-related brain responses and the potential for learning individual strategies through optimization across repeated feedback runs.