1. Scalp electrical recording during paralysis: Quantitative evidence that EEG frequencies above 20Hz are contaminated by EMG
- Author
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Alyson Pulbrook, Andrew Hardy, Sean P. Fitzgibbon, Stephen Loveless, Emma M. Whitham, Trent W. Lewis, John O. Willoughby, Peter Lillie, C. Richard Clark, Angus Wallace, Dylan DeLosAngeles, R. R. L. Fronsko, Marita Broberg, and Kenneth J. Pope
- Subjects
Male ,Elementary cognitive task ,medicine.medical_specialty ,Electromyography ,Electroencephalography ,Audiology ,EEG-fMRI ,Mental Processes ,Rhythm ,Physiology (medical) ,medicine ,Humans ,Paralysis ,Neuromuscular Blockade ,Scalp ,medicine.diagnostic_test ,Sensory Systems ,Electrophysiology ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,Acoustic Stimulation ,Neurology ,Neurology (clinical) ,Neuromuscular Blocking Agents ,Artifacts ,Psychology ,Neuroscience ,Photic Stimulation - Abstract
Objective To identify the possible contribution of electromyogram (EMG) to scalp electroencephalogram (EEG) rhythms at rest and induced or evoked by cognitive tasks. Methods Scalp EEG recordings were made on two subjects in presence and absence of complete neuromuscular blockade, sparing the dominant arm. The subjects undertook cognitive tasks in both states to allow direct comparison of electrical recordings. Results EEG rhythms in the paralysed state differed significantly compared with the unparalysed state, with 10- to 200-fold differences in the power of frequencies above 20 Hz during paralysis. Conclusions Most of the scalp EEG recording above 20 Hz is of EMG origin. Previous studies measuring gamma EEG need to be re-evaluated. Significance This has a significant impact on measurements of gamma rhythms from the scalp EEG in unparalysed humans. It is to be hoped that signal separation methods will be able to rectify this situation.
- Published
- 2007