A routine EEG records the brain's electrical activity through electrodes placed on the scalp. You arrive with clean hair, electrodes are measured and applied, you lie still with your eyes open and closed on instruction, and the recording is made. Nothing is injected and no sedation is used.
A routine EEG records the brain's electrical activity through electrodes placed on the scalp. You arrive with clean hair, electrodes are measured and applied, you lie still with your eyes open and closed on instruction, and the recording is made. Nothing is injected and no sedation is used.
Wash your hair and use nothing afterwards: no conditioner, oil, gel, spray or dry shampoo. All of them interfere with electrode contact, and product residue is the single commonest cause of a delayed or repeated study. Eat normally unless told otherwise, because low blood sugar changes the recording. If you have been asked to come sleep-deprived, follow that instruction precisely, since it is done to increase the chance of capturing abnormal activity rather than to inconvenience you. Take your usual medications unless specifically instructed to hold one.
The technologist measures your head and marks positions, then attaches electrodes with a paste or gel. This part takes longer than people expect and involves some scrubbing of the scalp to get good contact. You then lie back with your eyes closed and are asked to open and close them on command. Two activation procedures are usually included: hyperventilation, where you breathe deeply for a few minutes, and photic stimulation, where a strobe light flashes at varying rates. Both provoke changes that can reveal abnormalities, and both are stopped if you find them distressing.
The electrodes come off, the paste is removed, and you go home. Most people want to wash their hair straight away, which is entirely reasonable. There is no sedation, so you can drive yourself and return to normal activity. The recording is then interpreted by the neurologist who ordered it rather than by an external reader, and you discuss the findings at a follow-up appointment where the result is read against your history rather than in isolation.
Clinical Neurology Specialists has been physician-owned since 1998, when Leo Germin, M.D., FAANEM founded it. Five board-certified neurologists and four advanced practice providers see patients at the Las Vegas and Henderson offices, each with its own AANEM-accredited electrodiagnostic laboratory.
Clinical Neurology Specialists is an adult outpatient neurology practice for patients 18 and older. The practice performs no surgery and operates no imaging suite, infusion suite or interventional pain programme, and provides no emergency or inpatient care.
Physician-reviewed. Reviewed by the physicians of Clinical Neurology Specialists — board-certified neurologists, AANEM-accredited electrodiagnostic laboratories, physician-owned since 1998. Reviewed 1 August 2026. This article is general education for adults 18 and older and is not a substitute for a consultation.
Sources and further reading: MedlinePlus: electroencephalogram (EEG); MedlinePlus: epilepsy; National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.
Adults 18 and older, at the Las Vegas and Henderson offices. Call 702-804-1212 or request an appointment online.