Adding ketamine to propofol-electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) improves outcomes for patients with depression resistant to ECT alone. In 28 patients, six alternating sessions of ketamine and propofol-ECT over two weeks increased global functional connectivity density in the left temporal and subgenual anterior cingulate cortex and decreased functional connectivity strength within the default mode network. Although the functional brain changes lasted 10 days, the clinical benefit—measured by the Hamilton Depression Scale—lasted only 7 days, indicating a disconnect between brain alterations and symptom relief. The combination offers a short-term improvement, but its effect is limited to one week.
Cognitive impairment is common among cancer survivors and harms quality of life. A systematic review and meta-analysis of 23 randomized and 7 non-randomized controlled trials found that mindfulness interventions significantly improved patients' subjective cognitive function immediately after the intervention (between-group standardized mean difference 0.81, 95% CI 0.58 to 1.03; within-group 1.12, 95% CI 0.71 to 1.52) and at follow-up (between-group 0.39, 95% CI 0.09 to 0.68; within-group 0.59, 95% CI 0.35 to 0.82). Larger effects appeared in developing versus developed countries and for interventions without additional home practice in within-group comparisons. No significant effects were found on objective cognitive function.