Correlation Between Quantitative-EEG Alterations and Age in Patients With Interferon-?????Treated Hepatitis C

The authors recently observed alterations in the quantitative EEG findings in patients with chronic hepatitis C who were treated with interferon-a (IFN-a). However, the factors that influenced such EEG alterations remain unclear. The authors evaluated the correlation between QEEG alterations that occurred during IFN-a treatment and the age of 98 patients with chronic hepatitis C. These patients underwent blind, prospective, and serial quantitative EEG examinations. IFN-a was administered intramuscularly at 9 X 10 6 IU daily for the first 4 weeks and then three times per week for the next 20 weeks. Serial EEGs were obtained before, at 2 and 4 weeks, and at 2 to 3 days after the treatment. The absolute powers of each frequency band at different stages of the treatment were determined by QEEG. The ages of the patients were classified into five groups: 20 to 29, 30 to 39, 40 to 49, 50 to 59, and ≥60 years. The relationship between the alterations in power values and age was statistically evaluated. As the age of the patients increased, the alterations in power values for the slow waves, alpha 2, and fast waves during IFN-α treatment became more remarkable, and significant (repeated-measure analysis of variance; P < 0.0001). The alterations of EEG occurring during IFN-a treatment were marked in older patients.