Mapping the Brain

Quantitative EEG (qEEG) also known as Brain Mapping, is a procedure that records 19 channels of the brain’s electrical activity. This tool gives us the ability to view the dynamic changes taking place throughout the brain during processing tasks and/or at rest. Brain Map data can assist in identifying those areas of the brain that are fully engaged and processing efficiently, and those that are not.

Brain Maps provide information about the functional organization and/or disorganization of the brain and whether development is comparable to other, “normal” brains. It can serve as an important method for identifying variations in brain functioning associated with various neurological disorders.  These include Attention Deficit Disorder (ADHD), Learning Disabilities (LD), Depression, Dementia, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and Obsessive/Compulsive Disorder (OCD). More recently, researchers and clinicians have observed indications of additional conditions from analysis of Brain Map data.  These include dysregulation or “brain fog” possibly from COVID-induced brain injury, and Post Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS), a form of dysautonomia that is estimated to impact between 1,000,000 and 3,000,000 Americans, and millions more around the world. POTS is a form of orthostatic intolerance that is associated with the presence of excessive rapid heartrate and many other symptoms upon standing. Lastly, some physicians and psychiatrists increasingly are using Brain Mapping data  to choose medication and dosages (titration).

When a patient comes for Brain Mapping, a cloth cap fitted with noninvasive electrodes (linked to a computer) is placed on the head and sitting quetly, a few minutes of an “Eyes Open Task” and an “Eyes Closed Task” are recorded.  Sometimes we also record a reading task or a math exercise. We then upload the data (encrypted for privacy) to an outside company where it is compared to a database of 1000’s of people of similar age/gender/handedness, who are neurotypical.   From that, a report is written and signed by a physician that includes diagnostic impressions and training/treatment recommendations for electrode placement and frequencies to train.  The Brain Map and the report generated from it, allows us to maximize the efficiency and effectiveness of the  Neurofeedback Therapy we provide.

Note: QEEG Brain Mapping is an FDA approval [510(k) 974748] diagnostic tool and presently is the only objective measure for many of these neurologically based disorders. It is widely used in specialty clinics, select hospitals, and research institutions around the world.