Brain, interrupted: alpha/delta EEG ratio in survivors of pre- and post-natal adversity

Raha Hassan; Harriet L MacMillan; Saroj Saigal; Louis A Schmidt

doi:10.1080/00207454.2020.1797724

Brain, interrupted: alpha/delta EEG ratio in survivors of pre- and post-natal adversity

Int J Neurosci. 2022 Jan;132(1):31-37. doi: 10.1080/00207454.2020.1797724. Epub 2020 Aug 4.

Authors

Raha Hassan¹, Harriet L MacMillan^{2

3}, Saroj Saigal³, Louis A Schmidt¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychology, Neuroscience & Behaviour, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
² Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
³ Department of Pediatrics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

PMID: 32700609
DOI: 10.1080/00207454.2020.1797724

Abstract

Results: Young adults born at extremely low birth weight (prenatal adversity; N = 64, M_age = 23.14 years, SD_age = 1.26 years) had a lower alpha/delta ratio score compared to normal birth weight controls (N = 76, M_age = 23.60 years, SD_age = 1.09 years), while youth exposed to child maltreatment (postnatal adversity; N = 39, M_age = 16.18 years, SD_age = 1.15) had a higher alpha/delta ratio compared to controls (N = 23, M_age = 16.00 years, SD_age = 1.50 years).

Conclusions: Our results suggest that being exposed to pre- and post-natal adversity may have different long-term consequences on brain development. We speculate that these differences might be associated with some of the different functional outcomes known to characterize each type of adverse experience.

Keywords: Development; EEG; ELBW; Maltreatment.

MeSH terms

Adolescent
Adult
Adverse Childhood Experiences*
Alpha Rhythm / physiology*
Brain / growth & development*
Child Abuse*
Delta Rhythm / physiology*
Electroencephalography
Female
Humans
Infant, Extremely Low Birth Weight / physiology*
Male
Survivors
Young Adult