If your child is having an EEG, preparation is minimal. Your child's hair should be clean and free of oils, sprays, and conditioner to help the electrodes stick to the scalp. Your doctor may recommend that your child stop taking certain medicines before the test. It's often recommended that kids not have caffeine up to 8 hours before the test.
If it's necessary for your child to sleep during the EEG, the doctor will suggest ways to help make this easier. An EEG can be done in the doctor's office, a lab, or a hospital. Your child will be asked to lie on a bed or sit in a chair. The EEG technician will attach electrodes to different locations on the scalp using adhesive paste. Each electrode is connected to an amplifier and EEG recording machine.
The electrical signals from the brain are converted into wavy lines on a computer screen. Summary Read the full fact sheet. On this page. Conditions diagnosed by EEG Normal brain waves occur at a rate of up to 30 per second, but in someone with epilepsy, for example, the EEG may show bursts of abnormal discharges in the form of spikes and sharp wave patterns.
Other conditions that may be diagnosed with the aid of an EEG include: Sleep disorders such as narcolepsy Head injuries Brain infection Brain haemorrhage Alzheimer's disease Degeneration of brain tissue Metabolic conditions that affect brain tissue Hormonal conditions that affect brain tissue Certain disorders of the central nervous system Stroke Brain tumour Brain death.
Medical issues to consider An abnormal EEG doesn't automatically mean that you, for example, have epilepsy. EEG procedure Your hair must be thoroughly clean, but most importantly dry. Immediately after the EEG Once the test is complete, the electrodes are removed and you are allowed to get up. Taking care of yourself at home EEG is a safe procedure. Long-term outlook The EEG technologist can't interpret the test results on the spot.
Other diagnostic tests Other diagnostic tests depend on the condition under investigation. Where to get help Your doctor Neurologist Things to remember The electroencephalogram EEG is a medical test used to measure the electrical activity of the brain. A number of electrodes are applied to your scalp. EEG can help diagnose a number of conditions including epilepsy, sleep disorders and brain tumours.
Give feedback about this page. Was this page helpful? Yes No. View all medical tests. Related information. Temporal lobe epilepsy is one of 20 different kinds of epilepsy. It causes seizures that stem from the medial or lateral temporal lobes of the brain. Diabetes can cause long-term damage, from foot to nerve complications.
For some people, sleep is disturbed not by dreams but by seizures. You can have a seizure with any type of epilepsy while you sleep. But with certain…. Health Conditions Discover Plan Connect.
EEG Electroencephalogram Overview. Medically reviewed by Susan W. What is an EEG? Why is an EEG performed? Are there risks associated with an EEG? How to prepare for an EEG. What to expect during an EEG. After the procedure. What do the EEG test results mean? Read this next. An EEG test during sleep or following sleep deprivation has a better chance of showing irregular brain activity.
Doctors can recognize the changes that indicate seizure-related brain activity, which they refer to as epileptiform brain activity. The EEG test can sometimes detect this activity even when a person is not currently having a seizure.
An EEG may involve deep breathing or flashing lights, both of which can bring on epileptiform activity. A trained professional will look at the output from the electrical recordings and interpret whether the results are typical or whether there are signs of abnormal activity, including seizures.
Having normal EEG results does not always rule out epilepsy as it does not show what happens to the brain at other times. Also, it is possible to have abnormal findings on an EEG and not have epilepsy. Some types of epilepsy are more difficult than others to detect using just an EEG on the scalp. EEG tests demonstrate what is happening in the brain at the time of the test. If a person has a seizure during an EEG, this interrupts normal brain activity, and the technician can see abnormal brain waves.
These patterns help diagnose epilepsy. During an EEG, the technician will place the electrodes in a particular arrangement called the system. Each electrode has a number, and the technician will put the electrodes with odd numbers on the left side of the head and those with even numbers on the right. Each electrode also has an assigned letter, which will be either F for frontal lobe, P for parietal lobe, O for occipital lobe, T for temporal lobe, or Z for the midline.
The different lobes of the brain are responsible for particular functions, such as language, memory, or speech. Therefore, when a technician or doctor looks at the EEG results, they can identify the part of the brain in which the abnormal electrical activity is occurring.
In a partial or focal seizure, only some electrodes will detect abnormal activity. In a generalized seizure, any unusual activity will show up on all of the electrodes. The various types of brain wave on an EEG have different names, and doctors categorize them by their frequency, which is the number of waves per second. Examples include alpha waves, delta waves, and spike waves.
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