ELECTROENCEPHALOGRAPHY OF THE NEWBORN INFANT

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Abstract
A report is given concerning normal electroencephalographic patterns of premature infants in the first days of life. Thirty-one EEGs on 22 premature babies constitute the basis of the report. Three main frequency bands were noted: waves of 2.5 to 4/sec. which usually appeared singly at amplitudes of 45 to 80 microvolts; waves of 5 to 7/sec. occurring in episodes of 1 to 1½ sec. at 25 to 40 microvolts; and frequencies of 11 to 15 cycles/sec. which appeared in episodes of 3/5 to 2½ sec. at amplitudes of 10 to 20 microvolts. The 11 to 15 cycle waves appeared more consistently than did the other frequencies observed, and were usually more prominent in the frontal region. These findings indicate that in premature infants cortical electric activity from the frontal region is more well developed in regard to frequency, amplitude and rhythm than are the brain potentials from other areas of the cortex. This observation is contradictory to what would be expected from a consideration of the embryonic maturation of the human cortex.

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