Ri. Herning et al., COCAINE-INDUCED INCREASES IN EEG-ALPHA AND EEG-BETA ACTIVITY - EVIDENCE FOR REDUCED CORTICAL PROCESSING, Neuropsychopharmacology, 11(1), 1994, pp. 1-9
To understand the effects of cocaine on the cerebral cortex, 14 male p
olydrug abusers were enrolled in a study on the effects of cocaine on
the electroencephalogram (EEG). The experimental treatments were place
bo, 20 mg cocaine or 40 mg cocaine IV administered in a double-blind,
pseudorandom design. The EEG was recorded from 13 electrode positions
over the left hemisphere during a 3-minute baseline recording and for
30 minutes after initiation of the IV injection. The spectral power fo
r delta, theta, alpha and beta EEG bands was calculated from data coll
ected in each 3-minute interval. Cocaine significantly increased beta
in frontal and central areas and enhanced alpha in frontal and tempora
l regions. Cocaine-induced increases in EEG beta power had a cortical
distribution similar to those produced try barbiturates and benzodiaze
pines. As all of these drugs reduce cortical glucose metabolism, the i
ncreases in beta power may reflect a reduction in cortical neural acti
vity.