It’s been 100 years since Hans Berger, a German psychiatrist invented the Electroencephalogram! That's quite the milestone.
Just some quick fun facts:
1924 - Calvin Coolidge was elected President, Jimmy Carter was born, the first Macy’s Day Parade was held…and Hans Berger, a German Psychiatrist inserted silver wires under his subject’s scalp (mostly used his children) and invented the EEG recording. He called it an Elektrenkephalogramm and first described the alpha rhythm showing how it suppresses when we open our eyes.
1934 - It’s real breakthrough into the clinical world when 2 patients with Absence seizures were studied at Harvard and because their seizures didn’t introduce movement artifact in the recording a clear 3Hz Spike and Wave complex was seen.
1937 - the first hospital based EEG lab was started with a 2 channel EEG machine at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.
1963 - the first EEG registration exam is administered for technicians.
Although EEG is the most common test in Neurodiagnostics, the field also includes inter-operative monitoring, long-term monitoring, polysomograms, evoked potentials, and nerve conduction studies.
Being an Advocate for this field will help ensure that the next 100 years continues to see advancements and growth.
How can we help?
Being a mentor to new staff and promoting board registry will help make our field stronger.
Advocate for the field in your workplace.
Advocate for the best possible care for your patients.
Pretty amazing how this test has evolved and how we can now conduct them in the comfort of a patient’s own home.
Remembering how far we have come is inspiring for what is ahead.
Roya Tompkins, MS, REEG/EPT, RPSGT
References: Journal of Neurophysiology: Early History of Electroencephalography
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