# Comparison of Resting-State EEG and Synchronization Between Young Adults with Down Syndrome and Controls in Bipolar Montage

## TL;DR

This study compares brainwave patterns in young adults with Down syndrome and controls using EEG, revealing specific differences in brain activity and synchronization.

## Contribution

The study is the first to analyze resting-state EEG in individuals with Down syndrome using bipolar montage, revealing novel patterns of brain activity.

## Key findings

- Subjects with Down syndrome showed increased delta and theta band power and decreased alpha band power in posterior regions.
- Individuals with Down syndrome exhibited reduced parieto-occipital and left temporal synchronization linked to lower IQ.
- Frontal lobe beta band power was increased in Down syndrome subjects compared to controls.

## Abstract

The qEEG findings of subjects with Down syndrome (DS) have not been described in the context of bipolar montage. Resting-state EEG (rsEEG) with a bipolar montage was performed in 22 young adults (26.0 ± 1.2 years) with DS but without psychiatric or neurological pathology and matched control subjects of the same sex and age, and the results were conventionally and numerically analyzed. Channels were grouped into frontal, parieto-occipital, and temporal lobes. For every channel, the power spectrum was calculated and used to compute the area for the delta, theta, alpha and beta bands and was log-transformed. Shannon’s spectral entropy (SSE) and coherence by bands were computed. Finally, we also calculated the peak frequency distribution of the alpha band. qEEG revealed alterations in the rsEEG that were not detected visually. Subjects with DS showed a significant generalized increase in the power of the delta and theta bands, along with a decrease in the power of the alpha band in the posterior half of the scalp. This alpha activity also exhibited features corresponding to older euploid subjects, showing interhemispheric asynchrony in one-third of the individuals. The beta band power was significantly increased in the frontal lobes and adjacent regions, such as the parietal and mid-temporal regions. Individuals with DS showed a generalized decrease in parieto-occipital synchronization associated with intelligence quotient. Left temporal synchronization was also lower. The synchronization of specific channel pairs was greater in subjects with DS in the frontal lobe and much lower in the occipital and temporal regions. These results indicate that alterations in band structure and synchronization in subjects with DS are highly specific and can aid in the clinical evaluation of these individuals.