Space-oriented EEG segmentation reveals changes in brain electric field maps under the influence of a nootropic drug

Map landscape-based segmentation of the sequences of momentary potential distribution maps (42-channel recordings) into brain microstates during spontaneous brain activity was used to study brain electric field spatial effects of single doses of piracetam (2.9, 4.8, and 9.6 g Nootropil UCB and placebo) in a double-blind study of five normal young volunteers. Four 15-second epochs were analyzed from each subject and drug condition. The most prominent class of microstates (covering 49% of the time) consisted of potential maps with a generally anterior-posterior field orientation. The map orientation of this microstate class showed an increasing clockwise deviation from the placebo condition with increasing drug doses (Fisher's probability product, p < 0.014). The results of this study suggest the use of microstate segmentation analysis for the assessment of central effects of medication in spontaneous multi-channel electroencephalographic data, as a complementary approach to frequency-domain analysis.

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