Frontal Electroencephalography Findings in Critically Ill COVID-19 Patients

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Critical Care Medicine
• Infectious Diseases

Background:

• Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) impacts the central nervous system.
• Full electroencephalogram (EEG) montages for COVID-19 patients show nonspecific patterns and are resource-intensive.
• An abbreviated frontal EEG montage offers a potentially more accessible neurophysiological assessment method.

Purpose of the Study:

• To report neurophysiological patterns observed with an abbreviated frontal EEG montage in critically ill COVID-19 patients.
• To explore the potential prognostic capability of these EEG patterns.
• To assess associations between EEG findings and patient outcomes.

Main Methods:

• Critically ill COVID-19 patients on mechanical ventilation were monitored using Sedline Root Devices with frontal EEG electrodes.
• Daily qualitative EEG assessments were performed.
• Primary outcome was mortality; secondary outcomes included duration of intubation and hospital/ICU stay.

Main Results:

• Twenty-six patients were included; 84.6% (22/26) exhibited EEG discontinuity.
• While statistical analysis was limited, trends suggested higher survival (100%) in patients without EEG discontinuity.
• Patients with low-moderate frequency activity (7-17 Hz) showed a trend towards better survival (87.5%) compared to those without (61.1%).

Conclusions:

• The majority of COVID-19 patients monitored with an abbreviated EEG montage displayed discontinuity.
• Observed trends suggest EEG discontinuity may be associated with worse survival.
• Further research is needed to validate these findings and understand the prognostic value of abbreviated EEG in COVID-19.