title: Monitoring epilepsy in the intensive care unit: current state of facts and potential interest of high density EEG.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess the current state of the art of epilepsy monitoring in intensive care unit (ICU).
  
  
  METHODS
  Review article.
  
  
  METHODS
  A review of current scientific literature, as well as an illustrative case report.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Recent continuous electroencephalography (cEEG) monitoring studies revealed that non-convulsive seizures are very common in ICU. Conventional EEG is insufficient to detect them. However, very long recordings, of more than 24 hours, are needed to reach a good sensitivity. Even if cEEG improves monitoring of epileptic patients in the intensive care unit (ICU), studies using intracranial recordings show that conventional montage cEEG is, however, insufficient to detect all neurological deterioration in patients in the ICU. This review discusses the potential interest of dense array scalp EEG recordings to increase the sensitivity of detection of epileptic events in non-responsive patients in the ICU and to possibly help improve their prognosis, by allowing an earlier start of their treatment.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Studies using dense array scalp EEG could potentially improve the detection and management of seizures in non-responsive patients in the ICU. Studies comparing this technique to conventional cEEG recordings are warranted.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University of Wisconsin , Madison, WI , USA.
authors.forename: Melanie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Boly
authors.forename: Rama
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Maganti
mesh_terms: D000927:Anticonvulsants / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003128:Coma / Q000503:physiopathology; D003422:Critical Care; D042241:Early Diagnosis; D004569:Electroencephalography; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D007362:Intensive Care Units; D008991:Monitoring, Physiologic / Q000379:methods*; D011379:Prognosis; D012640:Seizures / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D013345:Subarachnoid Hemorrhage / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology*
chemical_list: D000927:Anticonvulsants
keywords: Coma; neuroimaging; seizure