Non-invasive evaluation of electrical brain activity: effects of non-medicative treatment and subject’s state

2013 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-31
Author(s):  
Inga Griškova-Bulanova

Introduction. The electroencephalogram (EEG) and evoked potentials (EPs) are widely used in psychiatry. Thus, it is important to standardize recording conditions according to instructions, arousal and attention levels of the subject. Also, it is important to evaluate the effect of nonpharmacologic treatment (electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)) on EEG and EPs. In this paper, an overview of researches, conducted in the above mentioned directions in Lithuania, is given. Materials and methods. EEG was recorded using standard protocols; P300, P50 and auditory steady-state responses (ASSR) were elicited. 44 schizophrenic patients, 25 depressive patients and 136 healthy subjects were investigated. Effects of ECT treatment, 10 Hz TMS procedure, and varying attention and arousal levels on EEG/EPs were investigated. Results. ECT had no negative impact on P300; alongside with clinical response, normalization of P300 parameters occurred. It was related to subject’s age and autonomic nervous system response during the treatment. A single 10 Hz TMS procedure produced a profound increase in the delta power of background EEG. In lower arousal level conditions, higher and more precise P50 potential, ASSR and background alpha power were observed. During distraction task performance, reduced gamma band response and ASSR, and increased background gamma power were observed. Conclusions. During the treatment course of ECT it is recommended to evaluate P300 potential changes and to monitor subject’s indices of the autonomic nervous system function, as these are related to clinical efficiency. Passively elicited auditory responses should be registered during low arousal unfocused attention conditions when the most precise responses of the highest amplitude are registered.

Author(s):  
Steffen Schulz ◽  
Mathias Bolz ◽  
Karl-Jürgen Bär ◽  
Andreas Voss

The autonomic nervous system (ANS) dysfunction has been well described in schizophrenia (SZ), a severe mental disorder. Nevertheless, the coupling between the ANS and central brain activity has been not addressed until now in SZ. The interactions between the central nervous system (CNS) and ANS need to be considered as a feedback–feed-forward system that supports flexible and adaptive responses to specific demands. For the first time, to the best of our knowledge, this study investigates central–autonomic couplings (CAC) studying heart rate, blood pressure and electroencephalogram in paranoid schizophrenic patients, comparing them with age–gender-matched healthy subjects (CO). The emphasis is to determine how these couplings are composed by the different regulatory aspects of the CNS–ANS. We found that CAC were bidirectional, and that the causal influence of central activity towards systolic blood pressure was more strongly pronounced than such causal influence towards heart rate in paranoid schizophrenic patients when compared with CO. In paranoid schizophrenic patients, the central activity was a much stronger variable, being more random and having fewer rhythmic oscillatory components. This study provides a more in-depth understanding of the interplay of neuronal and autonomic regulatory processes in SZ and most likely greater insights into the complex relationship between psychotic stages and autonomic activity.


2013 ◽  
pp. n/a-n/a ◽  
Author(s):  
M. A. Wijngaarden ◽  
H. Pijl ◽  
K. Willems van Dijk ◽  
E. S. Klaassen ◽  
J. Burggraaf

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Garry Elvin ◽  
Paras Patel ◽  
Petia Sice ◽  
Chirine Riachy ◽  
Nigel Osborne ◽  
...  

BACKGROUND Heart rate variability (HRV), or the variation in the time interval between consecutive heartbeats, is a proven measure for assessing changes in autonomic activity. An increase in variability suggests an upregulation of the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS). Music was shown to have an effect on the limbic system, respiratory rate, and blood pressure. However, there have been relatively few empirical investigations on the effect of music on HRV compared to mean heart rate (HR). Also, the majority of studies have been experimental rather than interventional, reporting significant changes in HRV as a function of musical characteristics, such as tempo, genre, and valence. OBJECTIVE The aim of this pilot study is to evaluate the impact of short duration music listening on the autonomic nervous system response of healthy adults. METHODS Six participants (three males and three females) were tested to investigate the effect of listening to music on HR and HRV. Electrocardiographic (ECG) data was recorded at a sampling rate of 1000 Hz using an eMotion Faros 360 device produced by Bittium Biosignals. The data was collected while the participants listened to four pre-selected songs in a random order separated by a relaxation period of 5 minutes. Data was then cleaned and processed through Kubious HRV 2.0 software. Statistical analysis using Wilcoxon signed rank test was carried out for the time and frequency domains. RESULTS For all but one song that is shorter than 3 minutes (song 1), we observed a statistically significant increase in Standard Deviation of the RR intervals (SDRR) (song 1: P=.125, r=.333; song 2: P=.023, r=.575; song 3: P=.014, r=.635; song 4: P=.014, r=.635) and in the Low Frequency (LF) component of the cardiac spectrogram (song 1: P=.300, r=.151; song 2: P=.038, r=.514; song 3: P=.014, r=.635; song 4: P=.014, r=.635) with a large effect size r, indicating increased HRV. No significant change in mean HR was observed (song 1: P=.173 r=-.272; song 2: P=.058, r=-.454; song 3: P=.125, r=-.333; song 4: P=.232. r=-.212). CONCLUSIONS Listening to pre-selected songs of longer duration than 3 minutes 30 seconds is associated with significant increases in HRV measures, especially SDRR and LF. Music thus has the potential to overcome autonomic nervous system (ANS) dysregulation and thereby benefit health and wellbeing.


Sensors ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (12) ◽  
pp. 2820 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lucia Billeci ◽  
Alessandro Tonacci ◽  
Elena Brunori ◽  
Rossella Raso ◽  
Sara Calderoni ◽  
...  

Anorexia nervosa (AN) is associated with a wide range of disturbances of the autonomic nervous system. The aim of the present study was to monitor the heart rate (HR) and the heart rate variability (HRV) during light physical activity in a group of adolescent girls with AN and in age-matched controls using a wearable, minimally obtrusive device. For the study, we enrolled a sample of 23 adolescents with AN and 17 controls. After performing a 12-lead electrocardiogram and echocardiography, we used a wearable device to record a one-lead electrocardiogram for 5 min at baseline for 5 min during light physical exercise (Task) and for 5 min during recovery. From the recording, we extracted HR and HRV indices. Among subjects with AN, the HR increased at task and decreased at recovery, whereas among controls it did not change between the test phases. HRV features showed a different trend between the two groups, with an increased low-to-high frequency ratio (LF/HF) in the AN group due to increased LF and decreased HF, differently from controls that, otherwise, slightly increased their standard deviation of NN intervals (SDNN) and the root mean square of successive differences (RMSSD). The response in the AN group during the task as compared to that of healthy adolescents suggests a possible sympathetic activation or parasympathetic withdrawal, differently from controls. This result could be related to the low energy availability associated to the excessive loss of fat and lean mass in subjects with AN, that could drive to autonomic imbalance even during light physical activity.


2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Noronha Osório ◽  
Ricardo Viana-Soares ◽  
João Pedro Marto ◽  
Marcelo D. Mendonça ◽  
Hugo P. Silva ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Remote ischemic conditioning (RIC) is a procedure applied in a limb for triggering endogenous protective pathways in distant organs, namely brain or heart. The underlying mechanisms of RIC are still not fully understood, and it is hypothesized they are mediated either by humoral factors, immune cells and/or the autonomic nervous system. Herein, heart rate variability (HRV) was used to evaluate the electrophysiological processes occurring in the heart during RIC and, in turn to assess the role of autonomic nervous system. Methods Healthy subjects were submitted to RIC protocol and electrocardiography (ECG) was used to evaluate HRV, by assessing the variability of time intervals between two consecutive heart beats. This is a pilot study based on the analysis of 18 ECG from healthy subjects submitted to RIC. HRV was characterized in three domains (time, frequency and non-linear features) that can be correlated with the autonomic nervous system function. Results RIC procedure increased significantly the non-linear parameter SD2, which is associated with long term HRV. This effect was observed in all subjects and in the senior (> 60 years-old) subset analysis. SD2 increase suggests an activation of both parasympathetic and sympathetic nervous system, namely via fast vagal response (parasympathetic) and the slow sympathetic response to the baroreceptors stimulation. Conclusions RIC procedure modulates both parasympathetic and sympathetic autonomic nervous system. Furthermore, this modulation is more pronounced in the senior subset of subjects. Therefore, the autonomic nervous system regulation could be one of the mechanisms for RIC therapeutic effectiveness.


2017 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 363-370 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miroslav Vlcek ◽  
Adela Penesova ◽  
Richard Imrich ◽  
Milada Meskova ◽  
Martina Mravcova ◽  
...  

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