Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Defective alpha reactivity with mental concentration

B F Westmoreland1, D W Klass

  • 1Division of Clinical Neurophysiology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota 55905, USA.

Journal of Clinical Neurophysiology : Official Publication of the American Electroencephalographic Society
|November 20, 1998
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Cerebral hemiatrophy with superficial siderosis and PLEDs due to a germ cell tumor of the basal ganglia.

European journal of neurology·2006
Same author

Corticobasal degeneration and frontotemporal dementia presentations in a kindred with nonspecific histopathology.

Dementia and geriatric cognitive disorders·2002
Same author

Periodic lateralized epileptiform discharges after evacuation of subdural hematomas.

Journal of clinical neurophysiology : official publication of the American Electroencephalographic Society·2001
Same author

Multifocal periodic lateralized epileptiform discharges (PLEDs): EEG features and clinical correlations.

Clinical neurophysiology : official journal of the International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology·2000
Same author

Subclinical rhythmic electrographic discharges of adults (SREDA) revisited: a study using digital EEG analysis.

Journal of clinical neurophysiology : official publication of the American Electroencephalographic Society·1999
Same author

Frequency asymmetry of sleep spindles associated with focal pathology.

Electroencephalography and clinical neurophysiology·1998
Same journal

The Physics and Physiology of Electrical Stimulation of the Brain.

Journal of clinical neurophysiology : official publication of the American Electroencephalographic Society·2026
Same journal

Neurophysiology in Postanoxic Encephalopathy: Pathophysiology, Prognosis, and Treatment.

Journal of clinical neurophysiology : official publication of the American Electroencephalographic Society·2026
Same journal

A Review on the Functional Connectivity of the Human Opercular Cortex.

Journal of clinical neurophysiology : official publication of the American Electroencephalographic Society·2026
Same journal

Surgical Aspects of Opercular Epilepsies.

Journal of clinical neurophysiology : official publication of the American Electroencephalographic Society·2026
Same journal

Cost-Effectiveness of EEG Monitoring in Hypoxic-Ischemic Brain Injury After Cardiac Arrest.

Journal of clinical neurophysiology : official publication of the American Electroencephalographic Society·2026
Same journal

Pathophysiology and Prognostic Significance of Myoclonus in Hypoxic-Ischemic Encephalopathy.

Journal of clinical neurophysiology : official publication of the American Electroencephalographic Society·2026
See all related articles

Defective alpha activity attenuation during mental arithmetic, observed in electroencephalograms (EEGs), indicates subtle cerebral dysfunction. This unilateral EEG finding, particularly the Bancaud phenomenon, highlights lateralized brain abnormalities in patients.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Clinical Electrophysiology

Background:

  • Alpha activity attenuation during cognitive tasks is a normal electroencephalogram (EEG) response.
  • Asymmetric or absent alpha attenuation can indicate underlying neurological dysfunction.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the diagnostic significance of defective alpha activity attenuation during mental arithmetic.
  • To correlate unilateral EEG findings with cerebral lesions and functional disorders.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of electroencephalograms (EEGs) from 120 patients exhibiting defective alpha activity reactivity.
  • Assessment of alpha activity attenuation during mental arithmetic and eye opening (Bancaud phenomenon).
  • Correlation of EEG findings with the presence and location of cerebral lesions or disorders.

Related Experiment Videos

Main Results:

  • Unilateral failure of alpha attenuation during mental arithmetic was observed in 120 patients.
  • The right side showed defective reactivity in 74 patients, and the left in 46.
  • 32 patients displayed asymmetric alpha activity to eye opening (Bancaud phenomenon), and 113 had lateralized EEG abnormalities on the side of defective reactivity.

Conclusions:

  • Unilateral failure of alpha attenuation during mental concentration is a subtle electrographic marker of cerebral dysfunction.
  • This EEG finding is associated with lateralized cerebral lesions and disorders.
  • The study highlights the utility of specific EEG patterns in identifying localized brain dysfunction.