Comparison of EEG Brainwave Asymmetry in Frontal Areas between People with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Major Depression, and Normal

Abstract

The aim of this study was to compare the asymmetry of QEEG brainwaves in frontal areas between people with obsessive-compulsive disorder, major depression, and normal people.The statistical population of this study consisted of all individuals with major depressive disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder who were referred to the psychiatric clinic of Fatemi Hospital in Ardabil in 2019. 15 persons with major depressive disorder (8 females and 7 males) and 15 persons with obsessive-compulsive disorder (5 females and 10 males) were selected according to the available sampling method, and 15 persons from the patients’ companions (7 females and 8 males) were selected in the same way and participated in this study. The Psychiatric Diagnosis and Structured Clinical Interview (SCID), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-ll), and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCI) by Foa et al. (2002) were used for data collection. In the next phase, QEEG registration was conducted in the psychology laboratory of Mohaghegh Ardabili University and the data were analyzed using SPSS25 software and Norogide software. Multivariate analysis of variance was used to analyze the research data. The degree of asymmetry of delta waves (F = 11.129), theta waves (F = 8.128), alpha waves (F = 3.810), and beta waves (F = 6.956) among the three groups of people with depressive disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorders, and normal people differs significantly in level (P < 0.001). The results of this study may be an important step to evaluate the therapeutic response and guide therapeutic strategies, including medication, brain stimulation, neurofeedback, or other rehabilitations.

Keywords

• obsessive-compulsive disorder
• major depression
• asymmetry
• quantitative electroencephalography