Clinical Neurophysiology and Imaging

The Clinical Neurophysiology and MRI department conducts EEG, polysomnography, and MRI studies that make a significant contribution to the diagnosis and eventual treatment of the patient. These investigations go "a step further" than the standard in Kempenhaeghe.

The measurements are longer, involve a greater number of sensors, and have higher sensitivity. Combined with video monitoring, nursing observation, and the additional expertise of the technicians who report the measurements, this allows us to extract more valuable information from the studies. Furthermore, our staff are specialized in guiding specific target groups, such as young children and people with intellectual disabilities. Additional facilities are also available for these groups.

During an EEG (Electroencephalogram), the electrical activity of the brain is recorded. At Kempenhaeghe, special forms of EEG research are applied: 24-hour EEG recordings with or without sleep deprivation (where the patient must stay awake for a full day and night), with or without video recordings, or EEG recordings combined with psychological assessments.

A special form of EEG is seizure registration research, where an epileptic seizure is deliberately triggered in order to determine the type of epilepsy or to locate the epileptic focus. These measurements can be very complex. In some cases, electrodes are placed directly on or implanted into the brain to achieve this.

At Kempenhaeghe, specialized MRI scans of the brain and head can be performed. We use various specialized MRI techniques, such as fMRI (functional MRI), where specific brain functions are examined, and the patient is required to perform tasks inside the scanner, and EEG-fMRI (a combination of EEG and fMRI), to determine which areas of the brain are actively involved in epilepsy. MRI under anesthesia is also possible, for example, for young or anxious children and individuals with (intellectual) disabilities who are unable to lie still.

Polysomnography is the gold standard for diagnosing various sleep disorders. At Kempenhaeghe, specialized forms of (video)polysomnography are applied: they are longer in duration, use multiple and more sensitive sensors to record more neurophysiological and cardiorespiratory signals, synchronized with audio and video, and continuously monitored and supported by nurses and sleep technicians. This combination allows subtle sleep disorders to be detected that explain the patient's complaints.

Additionally, monitoring and, if necessary, setting up ventilation therapy is carried out using monitored clinical video-PSG.