Short-latency somatosensory evoked potential and event-related potential in patients with multiple cerebral infarcts

Although the short-latency somatosensory evoked (SSEPs) and the cognitive event-related potentials (ERPs) have been found to change in patients with cerebral vascular disease, the relationship between these parameters has yet to be determined. For clarification of this relationship, SSEPs and ERPs were measured in 33 patients with multiple cerebral infarcts (MCI) and 25 age-matched normal subjects. ERPs were recorded during auditory discrimination tasks. The latency of P300 from the Pz region was measured. SSEPs evoked by median nerve stimulation were recorded from the second cervical vertebra and contralateral primary somatosensory cortex with a midfrontal reference. The central conduction time (CCT), the interpeak latency between N13 and N20, was measured. P300 latency in patients with MCI was significantly longer than that of the normal subjects. Patients with MCI also showed longer CCT than the normal subjects. CCT and P300 latency were significantly correlated in patients with MCI. This correlation was not found in normal subjects. From these results, the severity of the lesion with respect to SSEPs appears related to the prolongation of P300 latency in patients with MCI.