Ann Rehabil Med.  2017 Aug;41(4):693-700. 10.5535/arm.2017.41.4.693.

A Preliminary Study on qEEG in Burn Patients With Chronic Pruritus

• Miraval FK
• Shie VL
• Morales-Quezada L
• Santiago C
• Fernandes-Marcondes B
• Nadler D
• Ryan CM
• Schneider
• Fregni F

• KMID: 2389416
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.5535/arm.2017.41.4.693

Abstract

OBJECTIVE
To explore and determine the reorganizational changes in the cortical neural circuits associated with pruritis, this study was undertaken to compare the electroencephalography (EEG) changes in burn patients having primary symptoms of chronic itching (pruritis) and their paired healthy subjects.
METHODS
Eight subjects were recruited for this exploratory pilot study: 4 patients with pruritus after burn injury matched by gender and age with 4 healthy subjects. EEG recordings were analyzed for absolute alpha, low beta, high beta, and theta power for both groups.
RESULTS
The mean age of the burn patients was 41.75 years; while the mean age for the matched healthy subjects was 41.5 years. All subjects were male. A decreased alpha activity was observed in the occipital channels (0.82 vs. 1.4; p=0.01) and a decreased low beta activity in the frontal area (0.22 vs. 0.4; p=0.049) in eyes closed conditions. An overall decreased theta trend was observed in both the eyes open and eyes closed conditions in burn patients, compared to healthy individuals.
CONCLUSION
This preliminary study presents initial evidence that chronic pruritus in burn subjects may be associated with brain reorganizational changes at the cortical level characterized by an EEG pattern.

Keyword

Burns; Electroencephalography; Pruritus; Brain waves; Quality of life

MeSH Terms

Brain
Brain Waves
Burns*
Electroencephalography
Healthy Volunteers
Humans
Male
Pilot Projects
Pruritus*
Quality of Life

Figure

• 

  Fig. 1 A topographic map comparing the EEG brain wave changes of the burn subject #3 and his matched healthy subject.

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