Analysis of the frequency spectrum of the equine electroencephalogram during halothane anaesthesia

The electroencephalogram (EEG) has been used in human clinical anaesthesia as an indicator of cortical activity and as an indicator of the depth of anaesthesia. It would be useful if it provided a reliable indication of the depth of anaesthesia of horses. In this study anaesthesia was induced with thiopentone and maintained with halothane in nine ponies. The end tidal halothane concentration (PE-Hal) was monitored and 20 seconds of EEG were recorded at 0.8 per cent, 1.0 per cent and 1.2 per cent halothane, equivalent to the minimum alveolar concentration (MAC), 1.25 MAC and 1.5 MAC. Each 20 second block of data was divided into one second segments and averaged to give one second of averaged EEG from which a frequency spectrum was obtained by using a fast Fourier transformation. The power of the waveform at low frequency (1 to 3 Hz) was compared with that at higher frequency (9 to 11 Hz). The median frequency and 95th percentile (spectral edge) were also calculated. The spectral edge frequency had the best correlation with PE-Hal.