Electroencephalographic abnormalities in pediatric patients Hondurans protein-energy malnutrition: a case control study

Abstract

To determine and characterize the electroencephalographic findings of pediatric patients with protein-energy malnutrition using a case-control study.

An analytic descriptive study was developed with a group of patients and a healthy control group during the period of February 2007, through June 2008. The forty patients were gathered from a low-class school located in Comayagüela, matching their number to the healthy control group. Each patient went through an anthropometric, neurological, and laboratorial evaluation. Digital electroencephalography (EEG) was performed to both groups, which was later blindly evaluated by two clinician neurophysiologists.

42% percent (P=0.0000045) of the malnourished patients showed the following abnormal EEG tracks: a) focal discharge activity in 20%, b) slow discharge activity in 15%, c) global discharge activity in 12.5%, and d) slow global discharges in 10%. The most affected ages were between 6 and 9 years old.

A high frequency of alterations on EEG tracks was found on patients with proteinenergy malnutrition, reaching a 42% compared to a healthy control group.

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5377/rct.v0i8.698

Revista Ciencia y Tecnología, No. 8, junio 2011 pp.21-38