Routine EEG
Recording and examining the brain's electrical activity.
Careful analysis. Individualized care. Thoughtful follow-up.
Cognitive EEG
Difficulties with attention, understanding lessons, communication or development can raise many questions for families.
Cognitive EEG is our own assessment approach, designed and refined over the years to investigate difficulties with attention, understanding, learning and development. Through our clinical practice, we have helped families through assessment and care. Each child’s assessment is tailored to their age and needs, with findings interpreted within the full clinical picture.
Findings are interpreted alongside each patient's history, symptoms and clinical assessment to guide individualized treatment and follow-up.
Why do we use EEG?
The brain works through natural electrical signals. Having electrical activity in the brain is not a disease. EEG records these signals during wakefulness or sleep, and we study their patterns in the context of the child’s age and clinical picture.
We consider the recording alongside development, sleep, attention and age-appropriate assessments to investigate whether unusual electrical patterns may be relevant to the child’s difficulties and need follow-up or treatment. The reason for testing is explained for each child.
What matters is the pattern of electrical activity and what it means for your child. Requesting an EEG does not, by itself, mean a disorder has been diagnosed.
Four areas of assessment
Each area addresses a different aspect of assessment. The appropriate evaluation is guided by the patient's concerns and clinical needs.
Quantitative EEG analysis
Examining numerical patterns within the EEG recording.
Spatial analysis of EEG patterns
Examining the distribution of recorded electrical activity.
Cognitive and attention testing
Individualized assessments explore attention, understanding and learning. Findings are considered alongside the clinical history and examination to guide care.
Starting with your child's concerns
Older children: attention, learning and school performance
For older children struggling with attention or schoolwork, assessment explores attention, understanding and learning needs in the context of everyday functioning. The approach is tailored to the child’s age, abilities and clinical needs.
We look for findings that may be relevant to these difficulties, including epileptiform discharges that may temporarily interfere with attention and processing, possible absence seizures, and patterns of slowing. Findings are interpreted in the context of the child's history and clinical assessment.
Accompanying concerns we ask about
- Headaches or abdominal pain.
- Fear, intrusive thoughts or nightmares.
- Bedwetting, involuntary bowel movements or stool soiling.
- Sleep talking, sleepwalking, teeth grinding or drooling during sleep.
- Aggression, hostility or stuttering.
The assessment guides an individualized treatment plan, which may include medication based on clinical findings. Follow-up reviews attention, school functioning and accompanying symptoms to establish what has improved, resolved or persisted. Repeat Cognitive EEG assessment helps evaluate changes and guide further care.
Younger children: development, communication and activity
For younger children, assessment focuses on developmental history, communication, understanding, activity and sleep. The evaluation is tailored to the child's developmental needs; the older-child testing pathway is not automatically applied.
When the clinical history suggests a neurological concern, such as loss of previously acquired skills or episodes needing investigation, EEG during wakefulness or sleep may help identify unusual electrical patterns that deserve further assessment. We consider their relevance alongside the child’s developmental history and examination to guide individualized care.
Developmental concerns we ask about
- Poor attention or limited eye contact.
- Disorganized activity, excessive movement or marked hyperactivity.
- Delayed speech or difficulty understanding language.
- Difficulty following instructions.
- Poor sleep.
Following treatment, we review attention, communication, understanding, behavior and sleep. Repeat quantitative EEG assessment is considered alongside the child's developmental progress when reviewing the care plan.
These concerns do not necessarily share one cause. EEG findings are one part of clinical assessment and do not, on their own, diagnose every condition.
Following progress over time
We follow progress in communication, learning, sleep and everyday life, reviewing relevant findings to adjust care according to the response.
EEG improvement alone does not establish developmental improvement; we consider the full clinical picture, and outcomes vary between children.
Learn more about your child's assessment
Contact the clinic to discuss an appointment.
