top of page
BCIA Continuing Education Posts
The BioSource Faculty Explain Peer-Reviewed Science
Neurofeedback Can Protect and Enhance the Aging Brain
Across the studies reviewed by Jiang and colleagues (2022), neurofeedback consistently produced modest improvements in working memory and attention in both younger and older adults.
John Davis
Dec 8, 20257 min read
Neurophysiological Assessment in Clinical Practice
Neurophysiological assessment serves not as an independent diagnostic tool but as a physiologically grounded framework for understanding how clients process information, regulate emotions, respond to stressors, and organize their behavior.
John S. Anderson
Nov 21, 202516 min read
Precision Psychopharmacology: Irritability and Rage
This case involves a 28-year-old male who presented with progressive irritability and explosive anger episodes that emerged following sequential trials of two antidepressants and subsequently a psychostimulant.
Fred Shaffer
Nov 19, 202518 min read
5-Min Science: The Role of Pacemaker Neurons in Networks Trained by Neurofeedback
Pacemaker neurons cycle between quiet and active phases on their own, creating brief bursts of action potentials that can set the tempo for larger populations.
Fred Shaffer
Nov 17, 202511 min read
John Anderson and John Davis Answer Your Questions About Learning Processes and Mindfulness in Neurofeedback
John Anderson and John Davis discuss learning processes and mindfulness in neurofeedback.
John Anderson and John Davis
Nov 9, 202519 min read
John Anderson and John Davis Answer Your Neurofeedback Questions
Neurofeedback combines precise signal measurement with human learning.
John Anderson and John Davis
Nov 4, 202517 min read
The Clinician Detective: ASD or Brain Dysregulation Due to Dysbiosis and Mold?
A global drop in amplitude suggests either a disruption in metabolic support—such as mitochondrial failure—or widespread cortical inhibition.
Fred Shaffer
Oct 16, 202518 min read
The Clinician Detective: How Did A FOXP4 Variant and A Sellar Cyst Complicate ASD?
The identification of the FOXP4 variant marked a turning point in the case formulation, shifting the clinical emphasis toward genomics, mitochondrial assessment, and integrative medicine.
Fred Shaffer
Oct 13, 202523 min read
Interpreting the Raw EEG: Alpha Squeaks
We wish clinicians—particularly those interpreting pediatric EEGs—understood that alpha squeaks are normal, age-appropriate findings that reflect an active but immature visual-cortical network.
Fred Shaffer
Oct 12, 202511 min read
Interpreting the Raw EEG: Triphasic Waves
Triphasic waves are among the most recognizable and clinically meaningful non-epileptiform EEG patterns encountered in patients with altered mental status.
Fred Shaffer
Oct 7, 202514 min read
5-Min Science: Theta/Beta Ratio Neurofeedback
This study makes a valuable contribution to our understanding of the effects of neurofeedback on ADHD-related brain activity.
Fred Shaffer
Sep 25, 20253 min read
Lynda Thompson on Neurofeedback and Biofeedback Synergy
A growing body of research and clinical innovation has underscored the need to integrate multiple therapeutic modalities like neurofeedback and biofeedback when working with clients who present with complex psychological and physiological concerns.
Fred Shaffer
Sep 14, 20253 min read
Interpreting the Raw EEG: Frontal Intermittent Rhythmic Delta Activity (FIRDA)
Frontal intermittent rhythmic delta activity (FIRDA) is not a diagnosis—it’s a clue.
Fred Shaffer
Jul 10, 202512 min read
How Antipsychotics Affect the EEG
Ben's case exemplifies the core insight of Dr. Swatzyna’s clinician detective model: that not all psychiatric symptoms are psychiatric in origin, and that functional abnormalities in brain activity—detectable on EEG—can signal the presence of invisible, systemic pathology.
Fred Shaffer
Jun 20, 202520 min read
Interpreting the Raw EEG: Four Montages
All montages compare EEG activity between one or more pairs of electrode sites.
Fred Shaffer
Jun 20, 202516 min read
Interpreting the Raw EEG: Diffuse Beta Activity
The presence of diffuse beta is not inherently abnormal, but it does merit clinical consideration. It may reflect endogenous factors such as individual variability in cortical excitability, exogenous factors such as the use of CNS-active medications (e.g., benzodiazepines, barbiturates, certain anesthetics), or non-cerebral factors such as EMG contamination.
BioSource Faculty
Jun 19, 202510 min read
Interpreting the Raw EEG: Rhythmic Mid-Temporal Theta of Drowsiness (RMTTD)
In recordings of drowsy subjects, RMTTD often coexists with slowing of the posterior dominant rhythm and the emergence of vertex sharp waves, further supporting its link to transitional drowsiness states rather than to epilepsy or cortical dysfunction.
Fred Shaffer
Jun 19, 20258 min read
Interpreting the Raw EEG: Slow Alpha
Not all slow alpha is a pathological sign. A subset of these slow rhythms, especially when reactive and morphologically stable, represents not a degradation of function but a subharmonic of the canonical posterior dominant rhythm (PDR), generated by the same resonant thalamocortical loop but oscillating at half the fundamental frequency.
BioSource Faculty
Jun 19, 202514 min read
Interpreting the Raw EEG: Fast Alpha
The most pressing clinical issue surrounding fast alpha is its frequent misclassification, particularly when spectral peaks in the 18–19 Hz range are erroneously interpreted as beta spindling, pathological fast activity, or early signs of drug effects.
Fred Shaffer
Jun 18, 202512 min read
Interpreting the Raw EEG: Temporal Intermittent Rhythmic Delta Activity (TIRDA)
The most common diagnostic pitfall occurs when TIRDA is misread as nonspecific temporal slowing. Many readers unfamiliar with its focal rhythmic structure mistakenly attribute it to background slowing due to prior injury or generalized dysfunction.
BioSource Faculty
Jun 18, 202513 min read
bottom of page