An electroencephalogram, or EEG, is a test used to measure and record your child’s brain activity. An EEG is often used to monitor for epilepsy or seizures, and it can be completed in a short, 30-minute outpatient procedure or during a longer-term stay in the hospital using video monitoring.
What is an EEG?
An EEG is typically used for patients who have been diagnosed with seizures or epilepsy. It is also used to determine the cause of an undiagnosed issue in a patient’s brain. There are two kinds of electroencephalogram: EEG and video EEG, or VEEG.
EEG
An EEG is 30-minute test completed in the outpatient or inpatient setting. Following an EEG, your child’s physician evaluates the results to determine if further tests are needed, or if your child’s issue can be diagnosed and treated based on these findings.
VEEG
If more information about the brain’s activity is needed, a video EEG, or VEEG, is a more in-depth electroencephalogram that measures and records the brain’s electrical activity using video and audio monitoring. VEEGs require an overnight stay in the hospital to capture the brain’s activity during awake and sleep cycles. The duration of VEEGs is determined by your physician and typically ranges from 1 to 5 days.
In this time, your child is allowed to get up and move around his or her hospital room while undergoing monitoring. The care team may ask your child to perform certain tasks to trigger the brain’s reaction so he or she can be evaluated in a safe, monitored setting. VEEGs help physicians identify the problem and begin treatment immediately with medications, a change in diet or even surgery.
Preparing for an EEG
Preparing for an EEG
Day of the EEG
On the day of your child's EEG, please ensure he or she arrives:
- With clean, dry hair
- Without any hairpins or braids in the hair
- Sleepy or ready for a nap, if possible
When you and your child arrive for your exam, the EEG technologists will explain what will happen. He or she will then begin connecting your child to the EEG machine. This involves having your child either lie down or sit up in a reclining chair.
Your child can expect the technician to:
- Measure the size of your child’s head to determine where to place the electrodes. Electrodes are small, metal discs connected by wires to the EEG machine to measure your child’s brain waves
- Mark the electrode sites with a washable marker
- Touch your child’s head as the tech cleans the contact spots for electrodes
- Place electrodes on the scalp or face using a water-soluble paste
Helpful Reminders
Your child’s hair will not be shaved during this process; we can measure brain activity through the hair. Electrodes only monitor and receive information from your child’s brain waves; electrodes do not deliver any electricity to your child. For parents of younger children or children with disabilities, undergoing an EEG for the first time may be disorienting for your child. The care team will look for ways to distract your child while the electrodes are placed.
During the EEG
Depending on your child's needs, an EEG can measure a variety of brain activities. Your child's care team may:
- Ask your child to open and close his or her eyes
- Perform a photic stimulation using a strobe light in front of your child’s closed eyes
- Ask your child to perform a deep-breathing test
- Let your child rest and fall asleep, if possible, to monitor the various stages of sleep. Falling asleep and waking up can illicit different types of brain activity
Key Points to Remember
Key Points to Remember
- By measuring and recording brain activity, an electroencephalogram (EEG) can help explain why your child is experiencing seizures or other abnormal brain activity.
- A video EEG (VEEG) monitors your child’s brain around the clock to fully visualize and evaluate your child’s brain events within a safe environment.
- Your child’s head will not be shaved, nor will your child receive any electricity during this procedure. Electrodes are simply monitoring equipment.