Superimposition of a cartoon program as an aid in recording pattern visual evoked potentials in children

Superimposition of a television program onto the black and white checkerboard stimulus used in performing the pattern visual evoked potential (P-VEP) has been found useful in testing adults and children. This study tested normal-vision children under two conditions: with the cartoon superimposition and with the standard black and white checkerboard. P100 amplitudes were decreased slightly with the superimposition, but the variability was not significantly different. Waveforms and latencies were not altered by the addition of the cartoon. The use of cartoon superimposition therefore can be helpful in maintaining attention during P-VEP testing in children, as long as the diminished amplitude characteristic is taken into account.