EEG alpha variants and alpha power in Hispanic American and white non-Hispanic American young adults with a family history of alcohol dependence.

Results from several studies support associations among variants in electroencephalogram (EEG) alpha voltage, alcohol dependence, ethnic heritage, and a family history of alcohol dependence, although no studies have as yet been conducted in individuals of Hispanic ethnicity. Categorization of EEG, by using spectral analyses, into high-, medium-, and low-voltage alpha, as well as absolute EEG power in alpha and beta frequency ranges, was carried out for Hispanic American (n=108) and white non-Hispanic American (n=269) young adult men and women (age range, 18 to 25 years) who had a family history, but no personal history, of alcohol dependence. Eighteen percent (n=70) of the participants were categorized as having a low-voltage alpha EEG, 16% had high-voltage alpha, and 64% had medium-voltage alpha. In comparison with findings for men, women were found to have higher overall power in the low frequency alpha (7.5-9 Hz) and beta (12-20 Hz, 20-50 Hz) frequency ranges. Hispanic Americans had a lower percentage of individuals in the low-voltage alpha group (9%) and more individuals in the medium-voltage alpha group (73%) compared with findings for white non-Hispanic Americans (low-voltage alpha, 19%; medium-voltage alpha, 62%). Results of the current study confirm the presence of ethnic stratification in EEG alpha variants.

[1]  H Begleiter,et al.  EEG characteristics in males at risk for alcoholism. , 1991, Alcoholism, clinical and experimental research.

[2]  Thieme Verlag,et al.  Charakterisierung erblicher EEG-Varianten mit Hilfe der Amplituden-Intervall-Analyse - I. Varianten der α-Tätigkeit: Niederspannungs-EEG; Grenzfälle des Niederspannungs-EEG; okzipitale langsame β-Wellen; EEG mit monotonen α-Wellen , 1981 .

[3]  Reliable computer-assisted classification of the EEG: EEG variants in index cases and their first degree relatives. , 1996, American journal of medical genetics.

[4]  M. Hesselbrock,et al.  A validity study of the SSAGA--a comparison with the SCAN. , 1999, Addiction.

[5]  D. Dawson,et al.  Beyond black, white and Hispanic: race, ethnic origin and drinking patterns in the United States. , 1998, Journal of substance abuse.

[6]  C. Ehlers,et al.  EEG response to ethanol in sons of alcoholics. , 1988, Psychopharmacology bulletin.

[7]  Peter Propping,et al.  Genetic disposition to alcoholism. An EEG study in alcoholics and their relatives , 1981, Human Genetics.

[8]  Ernst Fernando Lopes Da Silva Niedermeyer,et al.  Electroencephalography, basic principles, clinical applications, and related fields , 1982 .

[9]  E. Jonkman,et al.  Sex differences in age regression parameters of healthy adults--normative data and practical implications. , 1993, Electroencephalography and clinical neurophysiology.

[10]  R. Herning,et al.  Gender Differences in the EEG of Abstinent Cocaine Abusers , 2000, Neuropsychobiology.

[11]  M. Schuckit,et al.  EEG spectral characteristics following ethanol administration in young men. , 1989, Electroencephalography and clinical neurophysiology.

[12]  Nariyoshi Yamaguchi,et al.  Gender Differences in Quantitative EEG at Rest and during Photic Stimulation in Normal Young Adults , 1994, Clinical EEG.

[13]  P. Finn,et al.  Reduced EEG alpha power in the male and female offspring of alcoholics. , 1999, Alcoholism, clinical and experimental research.

[14]  J C Christian,et al.  Genetic analysis of the resting electroencephalographic power spectrum in human twins. , 1996, Psychophysiology.

[15]  A. Tellegen,et al.  EEG spectra in twins: Evidence for a neglected mechanism of genetic determination , 1982 .

[16]  F. Vogel,et al.  Localization of a gene for the human low-voltage EEG on 20q and genetic heterogeneity. , 1992, Genomics.

[17]  H. Feiler,et al.  The search for genes related to a low-level response to alcohol determined by alcohol challenges. , 2003, Alcoholism, clinical and experimental research.

[18]  F. Vogel,et al.  The genetic basis of the normal human electroencephalogram (EEG) , 1970, Humangenetik.

[19]  J. Nurnberger,et al.  A new, semi-structured psychiatric interview for use in genetic linkage studies: a report on the reliability of the SSAGA. , 1994, Journal of studies on alcohol.

[20]  R. Caetano,et al.  Changes in drinking patterns among whites, blacks and Hispanics, 1984-1992. , 1995, Journal of studies on alcohol.

[21]  T. Pedley.  Current Practice of Clinical Electroenceph‐alography , 1980, Neurology.

[22]  J. Rohrbaugh,et al.  Relationship of genetically transmitted alpha EEG traits to anxiety disorders and alcoholism. , 1995, American journal of medical genetics.

[23]  F. Vogel.  [Supplementary studies on the genetics of human low-voltage electroencephalography]. , 1962, Deutsche Zeitschrift fur Nervenheilkunde.

[24]  T. J. Young.  Native American Drinking: A Neglected Subject of Study and Research , 1991, Journal of drug education.

[25]  L. Bauer,et al.  Quantitative electroencephalographic differences associated with alcohol, cocaine, heroin and dual-substance dependence. , 1997, Drug and alcohol dependence.

[26]  C. Ehlers,et al.  EEG low-voltage alpha and alpha power in African American young adults: relation to family history of alcoholism. , 2003, Alcoholism, clinical and experimental research.

[27]  H. Frankenberg.  F. Vogel: Über die Erblichkeit des normalen Elektroenzephalogramms . kart., 92 S., Preis DM - G. Thieme Verlag, Stuttgart, 1958. , 1959 .

[28]  C. Ehlers,et al.  Electroencephalographic responses to alcohol challenge in Native American Mission Indians , 1999, Biological Psychiatry.

[29]  T. R. Burns.  How does IHS relate administratively to the high alcoholism mortality rate? , 1995, American Indian and Alaska native mental health research : journal of the National Center.

[30]  C. Ehlers,et al.  Evaluation of EEG alpha activity in sons of alcoholics. , 1991, Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology.

[31]  J W Rohrbaugh,et al.  Association of low-voltage alpha EEG with a subtype of alcohol use disorders. , 1999, Alcoholism, clinical and experimental research.

[32]  C. Ehlers,et al.  EEG fast frequency activity in the sons of alcoholics , 1990, Biological Psychiatry.

[33]  B. Harvald,et al.  The electroencephalogram in uniovular twins brought up apart. , 1958, Acta genetica et statistica medica.

[34]  H H Stassen,et al.  Genetic aspects of the EEG: an investigation into the within-pair similarity of monozygotic and dizygotic twins with a new method of analysis. , 1987, Electroencephalography and clinical neurophysiology.

[35]  F. Vogel,et al.  The electroencephalogram (EEG) as a research tool in human behavior genetics: Psychological examinations in healthy males with various inherited EEG variants , 1979, Human Genetics.

[36]  Christine Fischer,et al.  A genetic study of the human low-voltage electroencephalogram , 1992, Human Genetics.

[37]  D. I. Boomsma,et al.  Genetics of the human electroencephalogram (EEG) and event-related brain potentials (ERPs): a review , 1994, Human Genetics.

[38]  Juergen E. Thomas.  Uber die Erblichkeit des normalen Elektroencephalogramms. , 1959 .

[39]  V. Hesselbrock,et al.  EEG, autonomic and subjective correlates of the risk for alcoholism. , 1993, Journal of studies on alcohol.

[40]  C. Gallen,et al.  Effects of alcohol on the EEG in Asian men with genetic variations of ALDH2 , 1993, Biological Psychiatry.

[41]  Patrick M O'Malley,et al.  Epidemiology of alcohol and other drug use among American college students. , 2002, Journal of studies on alcohol. Supplement.

[42]  P. Propping,et al.  The electroencephalogram (EEG) as a research tool in human behavior genetics: Psychological examinations in healthy males with various inherited EEG variants , 1979, Human Genetics.

[43]  R. Dahl,et al.  Spectral analyses of sleep EEG in depressed offspring of fathers with or without a positive history of alcohol abuse or dependence: a pilot study. , 2003, Alcohol.

[44]  E. Serafetinides,et al.  EEG signs of brain impairment in alcoholism. , 1978, Biological psychiatry.

[45]  D. S. Holmes,et al.  Alcoholism, alpha production, and biofeedback. , 1976, Journal of consulting and clinical psychology.

[46]  E. Niedermeyer,et al.  Electroencephalogram and seizures in chronic alcoholism. , 1991, Electroencephalography and clinical neurophysiology.

[47]  C. Ehlers,et al.  Electrophysiological findings during the menstrual cycle in women with and without late luteal phase dysphoric disorder: relationship to risk for alcoholism? , 1996, Biological Psychiatry.

[48]  S. Marder,et al.  Alcohol abuse and dependence: psychopathology, medical management and dental implications. , 2003, Journal of the American Dental Association.

[49]  Dc Washington.  Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th Ed. , 1994 .

[50]  E. Sindrup,et al.  ELECTROENCEPHALOGRAPHIC INVESTIGATION OF ALCOHOLICS , 1963, Acta psychiatrica Scandinavica.

[51]  A. L. Nielsen,et al.  Examining drinking patterns and problems among hispanic groups: results from a national survey. , 2000, Journal of studies on alcohol.