Electroencephalography (EEG) (cont.)

View the Epilepsy Slideshow

Brain Disorders Image Collection and Image Gallery

Take the Epilepsy (Seizure Disorder) Quiz

Medical Author:

Diamond Vrocher III, MD

Coauthor:

Mark J Lowell, MD

Medical Editor:

Scott H Plantz, MD, FAAEM

Medical Editor:

Francisco Talavera, PharmD, PhD

Medical Editor:

James S Cohen, MD

Results

When the EEG is finished, the results are interpreted by a neurologist (a doctor who specializes in the nervous system). The EEG records your brain waves from various locations in the brain. Each area produces a different brain wave strip for the neurologist to interpret.

When examining the recordings, the neurologist looks for certain patterns that represent problems in a particular area of the brain.
- For example, certain types of seizures have specific brain wave patterns that the trained neurologist recognizes.
- Likewise, a normal brain has a specific brain wave pattern that the trained neurologist recognizes.
- The neurologist must look at all recorded tracings, decide what is normal and what is not, and determine what the abnormal tracings represent.
The neurologist forwards the EEG results to the doctor who ordered the test, and you are then notified as arranged.