Long-term or "continuous" video-electroencephalography (EEG) monitoring is a diagnostic technique commonly used in patients with epilepsy. It involves the long-term hospitalization of the patient, typically for days or weeks, during which brain waves are recorded via EEG and physical actions are continuously monitored by video. In epileptic patients, this technique is typically used to capture brain activity during seizures. The information gathered can be used for initial prognosis or long-term care management. History Like standard EEG-testing, long-term video-EEG monitoring techniques developed from techniques in 1875 by Richard Caton in Liverpool. In 1890, his work was expanded upon by Adolf Beck as developments to the technique were enhanced through animal studies of rhythmic oscillations in the brain due to light stimuli. In these studies, electrodes were placed directly on the surface of the brain. Additional developments made using animal subjects persisted through the early 1900s including the work of Vladimir Vladimirovich Pravdich-Neminsky in 1912, Napoleon Cybulski and Jelenska-Macieszyna in 1914, as well as by Hans Berger in 1924 with the first human EEG recording. These developments lead to the modern EEG techniques which allow for non-invasive measurements using externally placed EEG caps and were established by William Grey Walter in the 1950s. From these easy uses and techniques, a longer-term method of EEG monitoring was developed called long-term video-EEG monitoring which applies these same brain-wave monitoring techniques in a long-duration test format. This test format allows at-home or extended monitoring in clinics and hospitals where the standard EEG monitoring was previously unable to be used. In either case, these EEG measuring techniques allow one to non-invasively measure action potentials of groups of neurons within the brain using transducers called electrodes. The electrical signals from these electrode transducers are then amplified using differential amplifiers to measure potential differences from one area of the scalp or brain to another. The acquired analog signal is then converted to a digital signal to allow processing and storage of the data using an analog-to-digital converter which is then filtered to remove any signal noise not associated with the neuronal activity. The final signal can then be displayed on an external computer screen as a visual representation of the EEG signals measured. Other EEG techniques can sum these cellular responses either temporally or spatially and help determine which areas of the brain are active during specific activities or due to specific stimuli. Medical Uses Long-term video-EEG monitoring