Electroencephalogramm Analysis

The EEG is a test done where electrodes are put on the patient’s head and it will show any abnormal electrical activity due to having epilepsy. If the results come back normal the first time, the doctor may try doing the EEG while the patient is asleep to test for any abnormal activity. They may even request for a sleep-deprived test or an ambulatory EEG.

The brain is one of the most complex organ in our bodies. To learn about the brain scientists use electrical stimulation. Electrical stimulation is the use of electrical probes to determine functions of the brain. Clinical observation of patients have also helped scientists learn more about the brain. Case studies of different patients such as Phineas Gage have helped to learn about the different functions of the brain and how they work together to perform complex activities. (Barron’s AP Psychology 6th Edition)

Electroencephalography is a form of measuring electrical activity in the brain using electrodes that are attached to the scalp. EEGs are interpreted by looking at amplitude, frequency, and shape of the waves that are formed. The significance of the results relies on patient specific information such as age, state of the patient, and the location of the electrodes on the scalp. Different areas of the brain can produce different wave patterns. There are four types of wave forms: alpha, beta, theta, and delta. Frequency is key in determining normal and abnormal EEGs, with normal frequencies ranging between 0.5-500 Hertz. Each wave type has its own range of normal frequencies, because each wave has its own set characteristics.

“Someone call 911”, I said, when I saw a girl fall down the stairs lying unconscious. The nurse at Rockdale County High School assisted with the situation. My friend Fred and I held her so she wouldn’t hurt herself any more than had already been done. The nurse notified us that this girl has epilepsy (meaning that a person has had two or more seizures, but it’s not contagious & is not caused by mental illness or mental retardation). I didn’t pay too much attention to what the nurse was saying because I was focused on the girl's breathing and her ability regain consciousness. The nurse insisted on calling her sister to be there for her when she wakes up. The nurse knew that when she would wake up, she would want to hug one of us or her sister because all she remembers is blacking out during the time it took place.

My heart started pounding against my chest, trying to escape and find a healthy pair of lungs, because mine it seemed had been replaced with those of a six-year-old girl. My mouth grew cold and dry as if the air around me was on the brink of snow. I desperately tried to tell my brain that everything was fine and that there's no need to panic. But my brain ignored me, as it had done many times before, and ordered by organs to keep fighting the against the danger to come. My head never seems to listen to me.

My mom had her second-ever seizure when I was in third or fourth grade. No one remembers the first time because no one was there but her. The day after it happened, we all decided she must have fainted or something and the doctor couldn’t find anything wrong with her. Back to the second time. I don’t remember exactly when it happened, but it must have been a Saturday afternoon because everyone was home and it must have been almost spring because the snow was melting but it was still cold. I do remember what everyone was doing when it happened. My dad was busy making supper, my sister was busy watching TV upstairs, my brother was busy playing in his room, my mom was downstairs, busy working on the computer, and I — I was in my room playing with

A seizure is caused by a sudden burst of abnormal electrical and chemical activity in the brain. This activity temporarily interrupts normal brain function. A seizure can cause:

Back in 2009, when I first came to the United States, I had a terrifying experience. I just finished taking a shower when I suddenly felt out of breath and my heart was pounding fast. With my nursing background, I had to keep calm, drank water and sat down judging that it would soon be over. However, moments later, the symptoms still persisted. I did not exhibit any chest pain, but I knew something was amiss. Without delay, I phoned my aunt who was a critical care nurse and was told to go to ED right away. We dashed to the ED, with me struggling to walk because I had an extreme feeling of doom. Everything around me was a blur. I was so scared. My husband was in Baltimore. I was with my relatives visiting in North Carolina and my three kids were still in the Philippines. I felt like my life flashed before me. It was the most horrifying experience I have ever run into.

You can’t remember your seizures but are told you froth at the mouth and yell obscenities. You can usually feel a seizure coming before it arrives. The seizures began two years ago, shortly after your older brother drowned in the river just south of the Bennington Avenue Bridge. He was swimming drunk after a football tailgate. You and he worked at the same mini-golf course. These days you don’t work at all. These days you don’t do much. You’re afraid of having a seizure in public. No doctor has been able to help you. Your brother’s name was Will.

I began convulsions as my brain was trying to stimulate my lungs to get more air. My eyes began to close and it was extremely hard to open them and keep them open. I soon started seeing black surrounding my eyes and everyone became a blur. I was not able to respond to anyone because I could not get enough air to both breathe and talk. I could hear their questions like “Mariah, can you hear me?” or “Hello. Mariah. I need you to respond.” I felt quite scared because I was trying my hardest, but nothing was coming out. The lady said my oxygen level was 58 and I was near respiratory failure, so I needed to get to the hospital. I began to become very nervous and uneasy. All I could see was black and my body could not stop shaking. The paramedics were in serious mode because due to my unresponsiveness and uncontrollable shaking they assumed I was having a small seizure. I got into the ambulance and they put an oxygen mask, which helped me breathe more than I could imagine. Once I arrived at the hospital they took me back to a room and gave me an oral steroid and a nebulizer treatment. This immediately

For an EEG scan, the patient will be lying on an examination table, and the doctors will approximately attach twenty wires and electrodes to the patient’s head. This scan will then measure the neuron’s electrical activity in the brain and produce patterns of the patient’s brain waves. This is useful because an EEG scan can detect any issues in electrical signaling between two neurons, as well as compare the brain wave patterns of the patient to the brain wave patterns of epilepsy. Since epilepsy causes a change in the frequency and rhythm of the brain, a patient who has epilepsy will have similar frequencies and rhythms. For an MRI scan, the patient will also lay down on an examination table with a machine around their head, but instead, they will go inside a large round tube that holds numerous powerful magnets. The purpose of these magnets is to rearrange the atoms in the brain, which are caused by the damaged tissues in the brain. After rearranging the atoms, the doctor can capture images of the brain and further analyze the images. Some areas of the brain will appear lighter, while other areas appear darker. This occurs because the area of the brain that has damaged tissue or a disease will display a different color than the surrounding area. In epilepsy, the area with the damaged tissue or a disease is most often the section where the seizures

On the eve of my seventeenth birthday, I was having a birthday party with my family, and I was not feeling well. My asthma had been bad for the past few months, but seemed to be worsening. I even had to leave my party for a little bit to take an aerosol treatment. That seemed to help, but only for about thirty minutes. I started to wheeze again, and I was not able to catch my breath. I have had asthma all of my life and have been in the hospital several times for exacerbations. After my family had left, my parents knew I needed to go to the emergency room. I took my rescue inhaler right before my parents and I left to go to the emergency room. We ended up going to Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio. Once I arrived, there was a long line ahead of me, but a triage nurse listened to my wheezing and sent me straight to the front. The nurses seemed panicked when they took me back to a critical care section of the ER. When I got in a room, I knew it was serious because there were five nurses and two doctors. I ended up staying at Children’s Hospital for a week and being on oral steroids for four months. Because of my asthma, I missed a lot of school during my junior year. I was on oral steroids for a long period of time, so it began to weaken my immune system.

Electroencephalogram (EEG) – an EEG records electrical activity OF the brains through electrodes affixed to the scalp. People infected with epilepsy frequently have variation in their brain waves, even when they are not having an attack.

You could tell my brother was screaming as much as he could with his small little lungs. I quickly ran over to our tiny bathroom wondering what was going on. There you could see my little brother using all his force to hold up my mom who had fainted on our cement floor. Even with the two of us repeatedly yelling at her to wake up, her eyes stayed closed. I began to really worry. I ran over to her bedroom and scurried through my blanket looking for my phone. As my sister dialed 9-1-1, I ran back into the bathroom where my brother was sobbing. My sister had already called my aunts and cousins over. They were all trying to help wake her up. They called out her name multiple times. They also hovered rubbing alcohol under her nose, in hopes of her waking up. I let my brother know that everything was going to be fine and that the ambulance would be here in no time to help my mom. I was shaking as I sat next to my brother helping him hold up my mom. My older cousin took our spots and helped sit my mom up.

In what seemed like no time at all my mom was back in the room and my brother was in Wes’s room because they’re best friends. We sat around for a few more minutes and then the doctor came in and explained everything to me. This was the scariest part. He told me that because my head had been hit I had a low chance of brain bleeding and the way to tell if this was happening would be a cat scan however he also explained the more cat scans you have and the younger you are when you have them the more likely you are to get cancer later in life so we decided not to get a catscan and he told me that someone would have to come and check on me every four hours and make sure I was okay. After I was done with the doctor I ran around the hospital with one shoe on makeup running down my face and a bandaged foot looking for Wes and Reiley. I finally found them and asked how everyone was doing Wes tore a muscle in their arm and Reiley was given something for the anxiety. We were all ready to go and then the question finally came up was I going home or was I still spending the night at Reiley’s because of many reasons I will not mention I decided to stay at