Gamma Synchrony, Ketamine and the Shaping of Consciousness  Scott Shannon (Psychiatry, University of Colorado, Fort Collins, CO )   C5

Gamma synchrony is gaining evidence as our best physiological proxy of consciousness. Many external factors such as stroke, concussion, anesthetic agents and psychiatric medications can diminish gamma synchrony. Few things have been found to enhance gamma synchrony or gamma power. Meditation is one tool to enhance gamma synchrony. Ketamine in dissociative, but not anesthetic doses, can accomplish this also. Both of these tools reduce Default Model Network activity and improve depression. Over the last three years, the concomitant use of Quantitative EEG and ketamine has created a clear pattern about how ketamine shapes consciousness and how this impacts mental health. This presentation will review gamma synchrony and its relevance to consciousness. From here, these shifts in consciousness will be correlated with quantitative EEG findings and broader implications for the understanding of consciousness and its relevance to mental health.