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Characteristics and clinical significance of delta brushes in the EEG of premature infants

Whitehead, K; Pressler, R; Fabrizi, L; (2017) Characteristics and clinical significance of delta brushes in the EEG of premature infants. Clinical Neurophysiology Practice , 2 pp. 12-18. 10.1016/j.cnp.2016.11.002. Green open access

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Abstract

Delta brushes are the hallmark of the EEG of premature infants. They are readily recognisable because of their characteristic appearance and are a key marker of neural maturation. However they are sometimes inconsistently described in the literature making identification of abnormalities challenging. The goal of this review is to provide an overview of research findings on this topic in the last five decades. Firstly, the characteristic features of delta brushes are described, including the developmental trajectory of their incidence and how they are modulated by vigilance state in normal neonates. Secondly, their clinical significance is discussed including how abnormalities in their incidence or appearance indicate particular pathophysiology. We propose that (i) the effect of age and vigilance state on the frequency, amplitude and topography of delta brushes, and (ii) heterogeneity within the cohorts of ‘normal’ premature infants studied, may explain the very variable descriptions of delta brush characteristics in the literature. By explicitly taking these factors into consideration to explain delta brush variability, the presented summary facilitates the clinical electrodiagnostic and prognostic use of delta brush abnormalities as a biomarker.

Type: Article
Title: Characteristics and clinical significance of delta brushes in the EEG of premature infants
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1016/j.cnp.2016.11.002
Publisher version: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cnp.2016.11.002
Language: English
Additional information: Copyright © 2016 International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
Keywords: Delta brushes; Spontaneous activity transients; Neonatal EEG
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences > Div of Biosciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences > Div of Biosciences > Neuro, Physiology and Pharmacology
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > UCL GOS Institute of Child Health
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > UCL GOS Institute of Child Health > Developmental Neurosciences Dept
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1536343
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