Objective assessment of the degree of improvement or deterioration with patients by means of Ipsative Trend Analysis of resting electroencephalograms

• Published in: Medical hypotheses Vol. 113; pp. 17 - 26
• Main Authors: Ulrich, Gerald, Juckel, Georg, Schlösser, Willi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Elsevier Ltd 01.04.2018
• Subjects: Alcoholism - physiopathology; Bipolar Disorder - physiopathology; Brain - physiopathology; Cerebral Global Function; Dynamic Pattern Approach; Electroencephalography - methods; General Adaptation Syndrome; General Adaptation Syndrome - physiopathology; Humans; Ipsative Trend Assessment; Male; Middle Aged; Models, Theoretical; Neurons - physiology; Rest; Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted; Software; Time Factors; Cerebral Global Function; Ipsative Trend Assessment; General Adaptation Syndrome; Dynamic Pattern Approach
• ISSN: 0306-9877; 1532-2777; 1532-2777
• DOI: 10.1016/j.mehy.2018.02.002

•The hierarchically structured intermediary stages, being due to the global top-down integration, i.e. GCF of the neuronal tissue constituting SR-EEG are the objective of a new quantification procedure which involves the dynamic information.•To that end we made use of the sequence of patterns being described to characterize the time-course of the SR-EEG.•GCF was treated as the macroindicator of the non-specific General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS) being the common denominator of the non-specific features of any disease, whatsoever.•As physiologic measure of the ever changing brain-electrical function, the EEG indicates the related psychological level of performance/behavior, thus allowing an objective assessment of clinical improvement/deterioration. We report on a new quantitative EEG-approach, called Ipsative Trend Assessment which is based on the spatio-temporally defined patterns which are generated by the global interaction of cortical neurons. The data were acquired from EEGs being recorded under resting conditions. Target variables are not the usually employed absolute values of the spectral parameters but rather their change being calculated from successive recordings with a single subjects design. Since the resting-EEG does not provide specific information, we had to decide what else might be addressed by that method. Our hypothesis according to which the SR-EEG indicates Selye’s behaviorally non-specific General Adaptation Syndrome is based on good evidence. Dynamic pattern comparison between subsequent EEGs on the single case level is a hitherto neglected method, which may be utilize, for instance, with regard to objective therapeutic outcome assessment. In order to substantiate the clinical meaningfulness of our new approach we report two case vignettes of psychiatric impairments. Apart from that, our procedure should provide the desperately needed objective assessment of the therapeutic effect with any disease displaying a certain proportion of unspecific symptoms.