Medisch Spectrum Twente Hospital (MST) researchers have developed several quantitative EEG techniques for the purposes of EEG monitoring, one of them being the Brain Symmetry Index. BSI extracts the essential data from an EEG and converts it into a clear signal, or even into written text. An initial prototype is already undergoing evaluation in an intensive care setting. Further development will take place in close collaboration with MST and the University Medical Centre in Nijmegen.

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An experimental test, which involves placing of six electrodes around the forehead and on the earlobes, can accurately predict within a week whether a particular antidepressant will be effective by using brain-wave patterns on an EEG. The lead author of the study and professor of psychiatry at the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at UCLA, Dr. Andrew Leuchter, said that until now there had been no reliable method for predicting whether a medication would lead to a good response or remission. The test can be performed in 10 to 15 minutes in any office setting.

A recent study reflected that the brain activity networks of those with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) was more random and unstructured, which was a deviation from the optimal balance between local specialization and global integration seen in individuals without dementia. The study was conducted by applying the network mapping technique described in the open access journal BMC Neuroscience to the EEG data obtained from patients with AD and frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD, a less common type of dementia with more prominent behavioral symptoms). The researchers claim that these results support the ‘disconnection syndrome’ hypothesis of AD; deterioration of cognition due to loss of functional connectivity and organization.

The FDA has approved BrainScope ZOOM-100DC, a handheld device for people with possible traumatic brain injury. The ZOOM-100DC is intended to monitor the state of the brain by acquisition and display of electroencephalogram (EEG) signals. The 8-channel product, capable of recording and displaying EEG waveforms and providing conventional EEG measures displayed in tables, is designed especially for those patients who don’t have immediate access to a hospital.

IMEC has developed a battery-free wireless 2-channel EEG system powered by a hybrid power supply using body heat and ambient light. The hybrid power supply combines a thermoelectric generator that uses the heat dissipated from a person’s temples and silicon photovoltaic cells. The entire system is wearable and integrated into a device resembling headphones.