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Review
. 2025 Apr;39(2):315-348.
doi: 10.1007/s10877-024-01250-2. Epub 2024 Dec 20.

Electroencephalogram monitoring during anesthesia and critical care: a guide for the clinician

Nitin Manohara  1 , Alessandra Ferrari  2 , Adam Greenblatt  3 , Andrea Berardino  4 , Cristina Peixoto  5 , Flávia Duarte  6 , Zahra Moyiaeri  1 , Chiara Robba  7 , Fabio A Nascimento  3 , Matthias Kreuzer  8 , Susana Vacas  9 , Francisco A Lobo  10
Affiliations
Review

Electroencephalogram monitoring during anesthesia and critical care: a guide for the clinician

Nitin Manohara et al. J Clin Monit Comput. 2025 Apr.

Abstract

Perioperative anesthetic, surgical and critical careinterventions can affect brain physiology and overall brain health. The clinical utility of electroencephalogram (EEG) monitoring in anesthesia and intensive care settings is multifaceted, offering critical insights into the level of consciousness and depth of anesthesia, facilitating the titration of anesthetic doses, and enabling the detection of ischemic events and epileptic activity. Additionally, EEG monitoring can aid in predicting perioperative neurocognitive disorders, assessing the impact of systemic insults on cerebral function, and informing neuroprognostication. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the fundamental principles of electroencephalography, including the foundations of processed and quantitative electroencephalography. It further explores the characteristic EEG signatures associated wtih anesthetic drugs, the interpretation of the EEG data during anesthesia, and the broader clinical benefits and applications of EEG monitoring in both anesthetic practice and intensive care environments.

Keywords: Anesthesia; Anesthetic drugs and EEG signatures; Depth of anesthesia; Electroencephalogram; Intensive care; Processed electroencephalogram.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declarations. Conflict of interest: FAL is the Editor-in Chief of the Journal of Clinical Monitoring and Computing, CR is an Associate Editor of the Journal of Clinical Monitoring and Computing; MK and SV are members of the general board of editors of the Journal of Clinical Monitoring and Computing. None of them had interference with the Editorial process.

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