The quantitative electroencephalogram and the low-resolution electrical tomographic analysis in posttraumatic stress disorder.

Clin EEG Neurosci 43(1):48-53 (2012) PMID 22423551

The electroencephalogram (EEG) is the recording of the brain electrical activity as measured on the scalp. Using mathematical algorithms, the 3-dimensional (3D) distribution of the electrical potential inside the brain can be calculated. One of the methods to calculate it is the low-resolution electrical tomographic analysis (LORETA). In this research, we seek to find the brain structures that differentiate patients with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) from controls. Ten right-handed consenting adult male patients were recruited from a PTSD clinic. All patients fulfilled Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (Fourth Edition, Text Revision [DSM-IV-TR]) criteria for chronic PTSD (duration >2 years.) and were on drug treatment regimens that had been stable for at least 2 months (involving only serotonin reuptake inhibitors [SSRIs] and benzodiazepines).The control group consisted of 10 healthy hospital staff members. All study participants underwent 19 channel EEG measurements according to current standards of practice. All artifact-free EEG strips were examined for spectral as well as LORETA analysis focusing on the theta (4-7 Hz) band which is suggested to reflect the activity of the limbic system. The theta band showed a statistically significant difference (P