Comments on article by Biggins et al.
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Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to F Perrin.
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A system has been studied with 3 purposes: digitization of the head and mathematical representation of the scalp surface, assistance for electrode placement, and digitization of the exact 3-D position of each electrode after placement. The system has been validated in several ways, mainly by comparing the electrode locations obtained using the classical manual procedure based on the international 10-20 system of electrode placement, and through the assisted procedure based on the described system. The main result is improved reproducibility of the assisted procedure which is 3 times better than in the manual procedure.
In order to model the brain's electrical activity realistically, the finite element method has been used to compute the potential distribution due to a current dipole. This approach has the advantage over the boundary element method of being able to consider anisotropies of the different conducting sub-volumes. The forward solution has been evaluated in the particular case of a three-layer concentric sphere isotropic head model of the head where an analytical formula is known. The errors on the dipole position and orientation have been estimated in the inverse problem procedure.
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First, we consider the main points that must be addressed when constructing topographic maps: types of projection, methods of interpolation, number and locations of recording electrodes, and color scales. Data integrity and precautions in map interpretation are then examined for the case of evoked potential data.
The neurophysiological mechanisms underlying mismatch negativity (MMN) can be inferred from an examination of some of the brain generators involved in the process of this event-related potential (ERP) component. ERPs were recorded in two studies in which the subjects were involved in a selective dichotic listening task. Subjects were required to silently count rare stimuli deviating in pitch from a sequence of standard stimuli in one ear, while ignoring all the stimuli (standards and deviants) delivered randomly to the other ear. The results showed that, in all cases, the negative wave elicited by the deviant stimuli showed the highest amplitudes over the right hemiscalp irrespective of the ear of stimulation or the direction of attention. Scalp radial current density analysis showed that this asymmetric potential distribution could be attributed to the sum of activities of two sets of neural generators: one temporal, located in the vicinity of the primary auditory cortex, predominantly activated in the hemisphere contralateral to the ear of stimulation, and the other frontal, involving mainly the right hemisphere. The results are discussed in light of Näätänen's model: we suggest the dissociation of two functional processes on the basis of activity of distinct brain areas: a sensory memory mechanism related to the temporal generators, and an automatic attention-switching process related to the frontal generators.
Description of mapping methods using spherical splines, both to interpolate scalp potentials (SPs), and to approximate scalp current densities (SCDs). Compared to a previously published method using thin plate splines, the advantages are a very simple derivation of the SCD approximation, faster computing times, and greater accuracy in areas with few electrodes.
The purpose of this study was to progress in the understanding of the electrogenesis of attention-related wave forms in order to highlight some of the underlying attentional processes. ERPs were recorded from 16 electrodes, from 12 subjects who attended selectively to either high or low pitch tones delivered at a constant inter-stimulus interval of 800 msec to either right or left ear, while ignoring a concurrent sequence of tones of the other pitch delivered to the other ear. The attention-related wave forms were obtained by subtracting ERPs to unattended tones from ERPs to the same tones when they were attended. These wave forms were topographically displayed by both potential maps and scalp current density maps and compared with the corresponding maps of the N1 component of the ERPs, to determine the similarity of their generators. It has been shown that the attention effect is expressed by at least two components in specific auditory areas, one of small amplitude, occurring during the ascending slope of the N1 component, sensitive to the pitch of the attended stimulus, and possibly originating in the supratemporal plane of the auditory cortex; another of large amplitude, peaking symmetrically over both hemispheres and having a different topography from that of the N1 component. As described by other authors, a third, later, component appears over frontal areas, but probably originates from deeper sources of the brain. Models of selective attention processes, particularly the 'attentional trace' concept, are discussed in the light of these results.
The physical meaning of scalp current density (SCD) is presented and its properties are described using simulations of brain generators by dipolar models inside an inhomogeneous sphere. Its properties are compared with those of potentials and magnetic fields.
Sixteen patients with acute respiratory failure (ARF) were studied. In group I (12 patients, 15 explorations) patients were treated with continuous positive pressure ventilation (CPPV) during conventional ventilation (CV), pulmonary lesions (PL) were severe (Qsp/Qt = 0.24 +/- 0.16 with PEEP = 14 +/- 7 cm H2O) and high-frequency jet ventilation (HFJV) was performed without spontaneous ventilation (SV). In group II (5 patients, 12 explorations) patients were treated with intermittent mandatory ventilation (IMV) during CV, PL were moderate (Qsp/Qt = 0.13 +/- 0.05 with PEEP = 8 +/- 3 cm H2O) and HFJV was performed with SV. In both groups, frequency was 120 c/mn and I:E ratio = 1:2. The cannula size, the driving pressure and the PEEP (water column) were progressively adapted to obtain the same blood gases as those observed during CV, FIO2 being the same. Results on HFJV were compared to CV. In both groups there were no differences between PaCO2, PaO2, FIO2, Qsp/Qt during CV and HFJV. In group I peak airway pressure (PAWP), mean artery pressure (MAP), heart rate (HR), transmural mean pulmonary and wedge pressure (MPAPtm, PWPtm) were not different. Mean airway pressure (MAWP), PEEP and pleural pressure (PP) were higher, cardiac index (CI) was lower. In group II, PP, CI, MAP, HR, MPAPtm, MPWPtm were not different. PAWP was lower, MAWP and PEEP were higher. We conclude that during HFJV it is possible to obtain the same blood gas as during CV, but HFJV without CV may not be indicated in patients with severe PL, because circulatory impairment is higher.
Evoked potentials and EEGs record punctate electrical activity at electrode sites. To represent the overall potential distribution on the entire scalp it is necessary to interpolate between these sampled values. Surface splines are mathematical tools for interpolating functions of two variables. In comparison to the classical methods of interpolation, based on linear combination of the potentials of the 4 nearest electrodes, spline methods are smoother, give more precisely located extrema and converge faster toward the 'true' potential surface when the number of recording electrodes is increased. These advantages are at the expense of lengthier computation time.
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For multichannel evoked potential recording, several authors have proposed to use the 'average reference.' This paper tries to justify the choice of this reference. Indeed, it can be shown that the integral of the potential distribution over a sphere including current dipoles is null. The limitations of the use of such an average reference are discussed.
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Sixteen adult patients with respiratory distress syndrome requiring mechanical respiratory assistance entered this study, the purpose of which was to obtain the same blood gas values under high frequency jet ventilation as under conventional ventilation. When high frequency jet ventilation without spontaneous breathing was compared to continuous positive pressure ventilation, peak airway pressure was the same, but mean airway pressure, positive end-expiratory pressure and pleural pressure were higher and cardiac index lower. When high frequency jet ventilation with spontaneous breathing was compared to intermittent mandatory ventilation, peak airway pressure was lower, mean airway pressure and positive end-expiratory pressure were higher, and pleural pressure and cardiac index were not different.
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