Dr Keith Zukiwski

03/17/2020

Telehealth for Veterans. Veterans Affairs Canada supports the use of telehealth to provide counseling by phone or video conference. I am now using a secure encrypted telehealth platform that lets me do video consults, counseling, stress management teaching, home biofeedback training, etc. Since I am registered as a psychologist in both Alberta and British Columbia I can take on clients anywhere in Alberta and from BC as well. Thanks. Keith

03/17/2020

Psychology by telehealth. Telehealth technology has been used to provide medical services to rural community for years. It used to require expensive equipment and special high speed data lines. Now it is available on our phones and computers using regular internet connections. Concerns for privacy have been solved by companies that provide encrypted video conferencing services. Current recommendations for the public to self-isolate and to follow “social distancing” will greatly increase the use of telehealth to provide medical and psychological services to the public. I am now using a secure encrypted telehealth platform that lets me do video consults, counseling, stress management teaching, home biofeedback training, etc. Since I am registered as a psychologist in both Alberta and British Columbia, I can take on clients anywhere in Alberta and from BC as well.

12/04/2019

Interesting news article on a depression network in the brain. This is more evidence of an important role of the front part of the brain (pre-frontal cortex) in inhibiting the amygdala and keeping depression under control.

There are several connections from what is mentioned in the article to what I do in my practice.
(1) Brain biofeedback or neurofeedback to improve function of the prefrontal cortex is one of my main treatments I have been using for years to treat depression, anger, anxiety, PTSD, migraines, etc.
(2) The new advanced event related potentials (ERP) EEG assessment examines the function of these systems in the brain. Many of the recent ERP assessments are showing abnormally low cognitive control function in the frontal lobe (meaning poor inhibition of the limbic system) AND over active limbic system activity. An over active limbic system can exert an inhibitory effect on the frontal lobe making it even weaker. Treatments can target both these systems...strenthen the cognitive control system and reduce limbic system overactivity.
(3) One of the brain assessment devices I am using sends signals through the finger tips to the sensory motor cortex of the brain and can detect imbalance in brain excitation and inhibition. Traumatic brain injuries and other brain problems can cause this imbalance.
(4) The article highlights the importance of brain networks. It is possible to target and change the function of one part of the brain by changing the function of a different but connected brain region.

From the article:
Patients with MDD had abnormal patterns of excitation and inhibition at the dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex, a brain area important to cognitive control functions, including the regulation of the amygdala, a key region embedded deep in the brain for expression of emotion. It has long been hypothesized that malfunctioning inhibitory control over the amygdala could result in depressive symptoms......A second study presented at RSNA 2019 looked at abnormalities in the complex network of connections in the brain known as the connectome for their role in depression. Previous research has focused on characterizing the connections between different brain regions, but this study...... looked deeper within individual brain regions. .............Patients with (Major Depressive Disorder) MDD had abnormal patterns of excitation and inhibition at the dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex, a brain area important to cognitive control functions, including the regulation of the amygdala, a key region embedded deep in the brain for expression of emotion. It has long been hypothesized that malfunctioning inhibitory control over the amygdala could result in depressive symptoms.............."In our study, we found that excitation and inhibition in the brain regions in control of executive functions and emotional regulation were reduced in patients with MDD,...........In addition, the researchers found that recurrent excitation in the thalamus, an area of the central brain that is also responsible for emotional regulation, was abnormally elevated in patients with MDD.

MRI illuminates abnormalities in the brains of people with depression, potentially opening the door to new and improved treatments for the disorder, according to two studies presented this week at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).

09/10/2019

Frontal lobe damage was found in military and veterans with mild traumatic brain injury and persistent post-concussive symptoms. This research reveals a possible target for brain stimulation and neurofeedback therapies.

A well functioning frontal lobe is crucial for good regulation of mood. Poor frontal lobe function is associated with depression, anger, anxiety, attention problems, poor working memory and migraines. Frontal lobe function can be treated with brain neurofeedback and neuromodulation therapies.

This article in ScienceDaily describes a study funded by US Veteran Affairs and the US Navy. In the study, 25 of the participants were active-duty military or veterans who had fought in Iraq or Afghanistan. They had all sustained at least one mild TBI that resulted in persistent post-concussive symptoms. The control group included 35 people with combat experience but with no notable history of concussions.

The research found lower function in the area beneath the lower center of the forehead (ventromedial prefrontal cortex) and excess fast frequency gamma waves in two areas of the brain.

Key points from the article:

“Using a neuroimaging process called MEG, the researchers concluded that the fast, or high-frequency, gamma waves were "markedly elevated" in two of the four lobes of the cerebral cortex: the pre-frontal and posterior parietal lobes. Those two lobes affect reasoning, organization, planning, ex*****on, attention, and problem-solving….(the researcher) was also surprised that brain wave activity was lower in the participants with mild TBI in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, which is central to the pathology of mood and anxiety disorders. That region is also critical for controlling activity in the amygdala, which processes such emotions as fear, anxiety, and aggression…..This suggests that there were severe injuries to the ventromedial prefrontal cortex….The findings from his most recent study, he says, can be used to help with brain stimulation techniques as a therapy for mild TBI…”

A new study finds that veterans and service members with a history of combat-related mild traumatic brain injury have much higher levels of abnormally fast brain waves in a region that plays a key role in consciousness.

08/22/2019

People can now find me on the Psychology Today list of therapists. The phone number on the page is for redirecting calls. My direct phone number is 780-982-6856 Link: https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/therapists/keith-zukiwski-neurofeedback-and-qeeg-brain-mapping-sherwood-park-ab/480686