[The combined application of visual evoked potentials and the quantified electroencephalogram improve discrimination of cerebral maturity].
OBJECTIVE
The aim of this job is to evaluate brain maturation by means of Electroencephalogram (EEG) and Visual Evoked Potentials stimulated with flash (VEP-flash) quantitative analysis techniques.


METHODS
The transversal study is made on a sample of 96 subjects in which EEG and VEP-flash, first isolated and then joining both, are analyzed. The selection of spectral parameters was done taking care of all the subjects were selected in the sense of maximizing brain maturation discrimination. Multivariate analysis techniques for classifying subjects were used. EEG and VEP-flash variables were selected with the linear discriminant analysis. In the EEG case the variables take into account, as a reference, either the median of the power spectrum or either the time instant in which the spectral power in every band reaches its maximum value. In the joined EEG-VEP-flash the VEP variables which give more information were related with the slopes and distances between the basic peaks of the evoked response (N1, P1 and N2) and age. For brain maturation evaluation the variables in the occipital channels are sufficient, being those of the right hemisphere the most diagnostic significative ones.


CONCLUSIONS
The joined use of EEG and VEP-flash means an improvement in the maturative level discrimination regarding to the isolated consideration of any of them. Variables obtained from the EEG-VEP-flash are enough for brain maturation evaluation.
Mañas
S
S
Departamento de Fisica Fundamental y Experimental, Universidad de La Laguna, Tenerife, España.
Sánchez
J L
JL
Moreno
L
L
Piñeiro
J D
JD
Aguilar
R
R
Merino
J J
JJ
Sigut
J
J
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004569:Electroencephalography; D005074:Evoked Potentials, Visual / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male