In patients with drug-resistant epilepsy who have a responsive neurostimulation (RNS) device implanted, a meditation protocol reduced anxiety symptoms. Ten patients completed loving-kindness and focal awareness meditation sessions while intracranial recordings were taken. Pre-surgery neuropsychological tests showed elevated anxiety and depression, with frontal or frontotemporal deficits in 80% of patients. A negative correlation was found between pre-meditation anxiety and self-reported depth of meditation engagement. Across all sessions, anxiety levels decreased after meditation. The findings suggest that meditation can help manage anxiety in this population, and integrating neuropsychological and neuropsychiatric evaluations may improve treatment.
A single ibogaine treatment was associated with improvements in processing speed, executive functions, verbal fluency, and verbal learning among U.S. Special Operations Veterans with histories of combat, blast exposure, and traumatic brain injury. Thirty participants completed neuropsychological testing before and after treatment, and 27 returned for one-month follow-up. Scores on the WAIS-IV Processing Speed Index, Delis-Kaplan Color Word test, verbal fluency, and Hopkins Verbal Learning Test improved significantly. No negative cognitive effects were observed up to one month post-treatment. The findings suggest ibogaine may have therapeutic potential for cognition after traumatic brain injury, though further research is needed.