Epilepsy, commonly known as “crohn’s disease” or “sheep epilepsy”, is a chronic disease in which sudden abnormal discharges of neurons in the brain cause transient brain dysfunction. Why should an EEG be performed in epileptic patients? The following is an overview of why EEGs are needed for epileptic patients: Why should EEGs be checked for epileptic patients? Since epilepsy is an abnormality in the electrical activity of the brain, and this abnormality in electrical activity cannot be directly confirmed by CT, MRI and other laboratory methods, only EEG can detect abnormal brain discharges to determine whether it is epilepsy or what type of epilepsy. This is why EEG is the most important laboratory test in the diagnosis of epilepsy. Is EEG harmful to the body? EEG is a non-invasive technique that records the bioelectrical activity of brain cells through electrodes attached to the scalp without any electrical stimulation to the patient. There is no significant discomfort to the patient during the test. A child with epilepsy will have an EEG many times during his or her lifetime, but no matter how many times it is done, it is not harmful to the body. Why is long-range EEG monitoring necessary? Epileptic discharges are highly random. Conventional EEGs can only record for 20-30 minutes and often have difficulty capturing abnormal brain discharges. 24-hour EEGs can greatly increase the positive rate of the test. The positive rate of video EEG (3-4 hours) is similar to that of 24-hour EEG, and the patient’s seizures can be recorded for the physician’s diagnosis, which is currently the most reliable test for diagnosing epilepsy, especially for pediatric patients with frequent seizures or those who cannot tolerate prolonged monitoring. Why should I be deprived of sleep before having an EEG test? EEG abnormalities and seizures are closely related to sleep. In most epileptic patients, abnormal discharges occur only during sleep or are significantly increased during sleep. Sleep deprivation must be performed the night before the test in order to ensure that the patient can sleep well during the daytime monitoring tests. Drug-induced sleep may affect the results of the EEG. Whether or not effective sleep deprivation is performed directly affects the positive rate of EEG. Parents should help their child with sleep deprivation as prescribed by their physician.