A pilot study examining transcranial photobiomodulation therapy intervention in college students with insomnia

Jiangshan He; Lianghua Zhang; Dan Liang; Xiaoyu Wang; Tianyi Luo; Haoda Wang; Ziqi Ren; Mingzhe Jiang; Lei Zheng; Qiyuan Cheng; Hui Xie; Xueli Chen

arXiv · 2606.24668

A pilot study examining transcranial photobiomodulation therapy intervention in college students with insomnia

Jiangshan He·Lianghua Zhang·Dan Liang·Xiaoyu Wang·Tianyi Luo·Haoda Wang·Ziqi Ren·Mingzhe Jiang·Lei Zheng·Qiyuan Cheng·Hui Xie·Xueli Chen

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Abstract

College students commonly report insufficient sleep and poor sleep quality, with ~30% meeting insomnia criteria, posing significant threats to their physical growth, cognitive development, and overall well-being, as well as imposing a substantial economic burden on society [1]. The hyperarousal model of insomnia [2] emphasizes that hyperarousal across cognitive, emotional, and physiological domains mutually reinforces one another. Neuroimaging studies have further identified prefrontal hypoactivity as a key neural substrate underlying these dysfunctional cognitions and elevated arousal, reflecting a failure of top-down modulatory control over both limbic reactivity [3] and brainstem arousal nuclei [4]. Moreover, transcranial photobiomodulation (tPBM) therapy targeting the prefrontal cortex has demonstrated therapeutic efficacy across neuropsychiatric disorders with insomnia comorbidities [5,6], providing preliminary support for its application in insomnia. However, the neuro mechanisms underlying tPBM's therapeutic effects on insomnia remain to be elucidated.

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Jiangshan He, Lianghua Zhang, Dan Liang, Xiaoyu Wang, Tianyi Luo, Haoda Wang, Ziqi Ren, Mingzhe Jiang, Lei Zheng, Qiyuan Cheng, Hui Xie, Xueli Chen. 2026-06-23. A pilot study examining transcranial photobiomodulation therapy intervention in college students with insomnia. https://arxiv.org/abs/2606.24668

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