Seizures following burns of the skin. III. Electroencephalographic recordings.

1. EEGs were recorded on 40 burned (acute) patients during their hospitalization. Abnormal records were seen in 88% of the 49 records, all showing slow waves and nearly 10% with epileptiform activity. EEG abnormality seems related to the combination of total body surface burned and time after burn and is maximal not immediately after the burn, but within 3-11 days after the trauma when hyperventilation, hypopotassemia and deaths tend to occur. 2. EEGs were also recorded on 27 (chronic) patients, 17 with seizures and 10 others with cognitive-behavior disorders. All showed an abnormal EEG. Patients with seizures showed slow waves in 82% of cases, often diffuse, usually more marked than those seen in the cognitive-behavior disorders; 41% of patients with seizures showed epiliptiform activity. Patients with cognitive-behavior disorders showed slow waves abnormalities, usually mild in degree of severity; positive spikes were found in patients specifically with a behavior disorder.