EEG monitoring after cardiac arrest

Hypoxic-ischaemic brain injury (HIBI) is the main cause of death and disability in patients who are comatose after return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) from cardiac arrest. The electroencephalogram (EEG) is a useful tool to assess the severity of HIBI and provide prognostic information. In addition, EEG can be used to diagnose epileptiform activity in patients with suspected seizures and monitor the effectiveness of antiepileptic treatment. The EEG signal is complex and the information from EEG experts may be difficult to interpret for the intensive care unit (ICU) physicians. However, continuous EEG (cEEG), facilitating the assessment of the evolution of brain activity over time, allows instantaneous detection of electrographic seizures. These innovative approaches may facilitate bedside EEG monitoring in the future.