The effect of aging on the wave form of the somatosensory cortical evoked potential.

Cortical evoked responses to stimulation of the median nerve were studied in forty normal subjects who ranged in age from 19 to 69 years. Latency, interpeak delay, absolute amplitude and ratio of amplitudes have been classified according to their relation with the positive peaks P1–P4 in four principal components. The following effects of aging were observed. 1. 1. Latencies of components 1 and 4 presented no significant alteration, but the latencies of components 2 and 3 lengthened significantly with older age. 2. 2. Amplitudes described a U-shaped curve, namely decreasing at the 30–45 year age level and increasing again in older age. Nevertheless, in the amplitudes of component 2, the descending limb of the U was not significant, and in component 4, no ascending limb of the U was noticed. Each of the four principal components that presented a characteristic alteration with aging corresponds respectively to the following functional units: late part of the classical positive-negative primary response, association response, first late component and “V” potential. These findings suggest a selective sensitivity of the different functional units of the somatosensory evoked potential to the aging process.

[1]  T. Allison,et al.  Distribution of cerebral somatosensory evoked responses in normal man , 1962 .

[2]  R. Engel,et al.  APPRAISAL OF CONCEPTUAL AGE OF NEWBORN INFANTS BY ELECTROENCEPHALOGRAPHIC METHODS. , 1963, The Journal of pediatrics.

[3]  P. Davis,et al.  ELECTRICAL REACTIONS OF THE HUMAN BRAIN TO AUDITORY STIMULATION DURING SLEEP , 1939 .

[4]  E. Perl,et al.  Potentials evoked in cerebral somatosensory region. , 1955, Journal of neurophysiology.

[5]  R. E. Dustman,et al.  The effects of maturation and aging on the wave form of visually evoked potentials. , 1969, Electroencephalography and clinical neurophysiology.

[6]  R. J. Ellingson.  Cortical electrical responses to visual stimulation in the human infant. , 1960, Electroencephalography and clinical neurophysiology.

[7]  O. Lippold,et al.  The evoked cortical somatosensory response in normal man and its modification by oral lithium carbonate. , 1966, Electroencephalography and clinical neurophysiology.

[8]  T. Allison.  Recovery functions of somatosensory evoked responses in man. , 1962, Electroencephalography and clinical neurophysiology.

[9]  M. Manfredi,et al.  SOMATIC AFFERENT TRANSMISSION AND CORTICAL RESPONSIVENESS DURING NATURAL SLEEP AND AROUSAL IN THE CAT. , 1965, Electroencephalography and clinical neurophysiology.

[10]  F. Kemble.  Conduction in the normal adult median nerve: the different effect of ageing in men and women. , 1967, Electromyography.

[11]  G. D. Davis,et al.  Changes in latency and form of the photically induced average evoked response in human infants. , 1967, Electroencephalography and clinical neurophysiology.

[12]  R. J. Ellingson,et al.  Electroencephalograms of normal, full-term newborns immediately after birth with observations on arousal and visual evoked responses. , 1958, Electroencephalography and clinical neurophysiology.

[13]  J. Paillard,et al.  [Encephalography; a study of the potentials evoked in man on the level with the vertex]. , 1953, Revue neurologique.

[14]  D. Purpura.  ANALYSIS OF AXODENDRITIC SYNAPTIC ORGANIZATIONS IN IMMATURE CEREBRAL CORTEX * , 1961, Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences.

[15]  T. Allison.  CORTICAL AND SUBCORTICAL EVOKED RESPONSES TO CENTRAL STIMULI DURING WAKEFULNESS AND SLEEP. , 1965, Electroencephalography and clinical neurophysiology.

[16]  H. Lüders,et al.  Cortical evoked potentials in hepatolenticular degeneration. , 1969, Electroencephalography and clinical neurophysiology.

[17]  H. Lenard,et al.  Somato-sensory evoked responses in newborn infants. , 1968, Electroencephalography and clinical neurophysiology.

[18]  J. Shaw,et al.  The form voltage distribution and physiological significance of the K-complex. , 1956, Electroencephalography and clinical neurophysiology.

[19]  A. Barnet,et al.  AVERAGED EVOKED ELECTROENCEPHALOGRAPHIC RESPONSES TO CLICKS IN THE HUMAN NEWBORN. , 1965, Electroencephalography and clinical neurophysiology.

[20]  F. Morrell,et al.  Developmental study of photic evoked responses in premature infants. , 1970, Electroencephalography and clinical neurophysiology.

[21]  S. Matsuoka,et al.  Effects of cryogenic thalamic lesions on the somesthetic evoked response in man. , 1965, Electroencephalography and clinical neurophysiology.

[22]  A. Hrbek,et al.  CORTICAL EVOKED RESPONSES TO VISUAL STIMULATION IN FULL-TERM AND PREMATURE NEWBORNS. , 1964, Electroencephalography and clinical neurophysiology.

[23]  C. Shagass,et al.  Age, Personality, and Somatosensory Cerebral Evoked Responses , 1965, Science.

[24]  C. Shagass,et al.  Visually evoked cerebral response changes associated with chronic brain syndromes and aging. , 1965, Journal of gerontology.

[25]  K. A. Kooi,et al.  VISUAL EVOKED RESPONSES IN MAN: NORMATIVE DATA * , 1964, Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences.

[26]  T. Allison,et al.  Cerebral somatosensory responses evoked during sleep in man. , 1966, Electroencephalography and clinical neurophysiology.

[27]  C. Shagass,et al.  RECOVERY FUNCTIONS OF SOMATOSENSORY PERIPHERAL NERVE AND CEREBRAL EVOKED RESPONSES IN MAN. , 1964, Electroencephalography and clinical neurophysiology.