Seizure Detection by Critical Care Providers Using Amplitude-Integrated Electroencephalography and Color Density Spectral Array in Pediatric Cardiac Arrest Patients
Authors: Du Pont-Thibodeau Geneviève , Sanchez Sarah M. , Jawad Abbas F. , Nadkarni Vinay M. , Berg Robert A. , Abend Nicholas S. , Topjian Alexis A. 
Published: February 2017

Objectives:

Determine the accuracy and confidence of critical care medicine providers to identify seizures using amplitude-integrated electroencephalography versus amplitude-integrated electroencephalography combined with color density spectral array electroencephalography (aEEG + CDSA).

Design:

Tutorial and questionnaire.

Setting:

PICU.

Subjects:

Pediatric critical care providers (attendings, fellows, and nurses).

Interventions:

A standardized powerpoint tutorial on amplitude-integrated electroencephalography and color density spectral array followed by classification of 100 amplitude-integrated electroencephalography images and 100 amplitude-integrated electroencephalography combined with color density spectral array as displaying seizures or not displaying seizures.

Measurements and Main Results:

Electroencephalography tracings were obtained from children monitored with continuous electroencephalography after cardiac arrest. The gold standard for seizure identification was continuous electroencephalography interpretation by a pediatric electroencephalographer. The same electroencephalography tracings were used to generate images containing only amplitude-integrated electroencephalography or aEEG + CDSA. Twenty-three critical care medicine providers underwent a 30-minute tutorial on amplitude-integrated electroencephalography and color density spectral array interpretation. They were then asked to determine if there were seizures on 100 amplitude-integrated electroencephalography images and 100 aEEG + CDSA. Amplitude-integrated electroencephalography seizure detection sensitivity was 77% (95% CI, 73%–80%), specificity of 65% (95% CI, 62%–67%), negative predictive value of 88% (95% CI, 86%–90%), and positive predictive value of 46% (95% CI, 43%–49%). For aEEG + CDSA, sensitivity was 77% (95% CI, 74%–81%), specificity of 68% (95% CI, 66%–71%), negative predictive value of 89% (95% CI, 87%–90%), and positive predictive value of 49% (95% CI, 46%–52%). Sensitivity for status epilepticus detection was 77% (95% CI, 71%–82%) with amplitude-integrated electroencephalography and 75% (95% CI, 69%–81%) with aEEG + CDSA. The addition of color density spectral array to amplitude-integrated electroencephalography did not improve seizure detection. However, 87% of critical care medicine providers qualitatively felt that combining both modalities increased their ability to detect seizures.

Conclusions:

Amplitude-integrated electroencephalography and aEEG + CDSA offer reasonable sensitivity and negative predictive value for seizure detection by critical care medicine providers. aEEG + CDSA did not improve seizure detection over amplitude-integrated electroencephalography alone although critical care medicine providers felt more confident using both tools combined. Amplitude-integrated electroencephalography and color density spectral array require further evaluation as a tool for screening for seizures and should only be used in conjunction with professional continuous electroencephalography review.