Stress assessment based on EEG univariate features and functional connectivity measures

Abstract

Abstract. The biological response to stress originates in the brain but involves different biochemical and physiological effects. Many common clinical methods to assess stress are based on the presence of specific hormones and on features extracted from different signals, including electrocardiogram, blood pressure, skin temperature, or galvanic skin response. The aim of this paper was to assess stress using EEG-based variables obtained from univariate analysis and functional connectivity evaluation. Two different stressors, Stroop test and sleep deprivation, were applied to 30 volunteers to find common EEG patterns related to stress effects. Results showed a decrease of high alpha power (11 to 12 Hz), an increase in the high beta band (23 to 36 Hz, considered a busy brain indicator), and a decrease in the approximate entropy. Moreover, connectivity showed that the high beta coherence and the interhemispheric nonlinear couplings, measured by the cross mutual information function, increased significantly for both stressors, suggesting that useful stress indexes may be obtained from EEG-based features.

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“…High beta wave in EEG has generally been related to stress, and recent studies have shown that addiction [12], anxiety [13], and stress [14, 15] increase high beta waves. Gamma waves, along with beta waves, have been reported to be related to sensory stimulation.…”

EEG Brain Wave Activity at Rest and during Evoked Attention in Children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Effects of Methylphenidate

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Correlation of EEG spectra, connectivity, and information theoretical biomarkers with psychological states in the epilepsy monitoring unit — A pilot study

“…We found correlations of EEG biomarkers with psychological states that match reports about previous efforts into this direction. It was shown that EEG spectral properties correspond to stress states [32][33][34][35]. However, the exact EEG-frequency range, where this stress response might be found, varies over the full range of frequency bands from delta to gamma across studies.…”