NAPLES, Fl. – October 21, 2022 The NCH Healthcare System announced the launch of the new Ceribell Rapid EEG Brain Monitoring program to ensure optimal care is provided for critically ill patients. The Rapid EEG is the first of its kind and is an early warning system that provides a vital sign for brain function.
A quarter of all critically ill neurologic patients are at high risk of seizures. Of those, 90% experience a type of seizure that shows no outward visible signs (non-convulsive) and can only be detected using EEG. If prolonged, non-convulsive seizures can lead to permanent brain injury, higher risk of morbidity and mortality, and longer hospital stay. EEG should be initiated promptly within 15-60 minutes when these seizures are suspected, however, meeting these guidelines have been challenging due to limitations of conventional EEG systems, which were not designed for use in emergency situations and have a long wait time for results. Even top academic centers with 24/7 EEG capability experience a 4-hour wait-time when using conventional equipment.
The Ceribell Rapid EEG Brain Monitoring system was developed to address these limitations of conventional EEG so patients at risk of seizure can be triaged much more quickly. Using the new Ceribell system, NCH clinicians now have immediate access to EEG information so they can triage at-risk patients in just 5-minutes and monitor patients for treatment optimization.
The device consists of a simple headband, pocket-sized recorder with intuitive software, and an on-line portal for remote viewing. Using the Ceribell system, physicians can review EEG data, assess response to treatment and optimize care, all in real-time. The technology can be activated in minutes, and clinicians with no prior background in EEG are even able to triage seizure in a short amount of time due to the device’s automatic monitoring and an alert system which enables rapid identification of harmful brain patterns. Physicians can also access and review the EEG in real-time remotely from anywhere and assess the onsite team’s response to treatment.
“Ceribell founders saw that critically ill patients often experience undiagnosed non-convulsive seizure as a result of lack of access to EEG. Some suffered major neurological deficits while others simply didn’t make it,” said Jane Chao, PhD, Co-founder and CEO of Ceribell. “It is our mission to ensure no patients suffer unnecessary brain injury as a result of not having prompt EEG. We are excited to see visionary pioneer health care practitioners at the NCH Healthcare System adopting this technology and transforming their EEG capability.”
“NCH Healthcare System is becoming an Advanced Community Healthcare SystemTM and a big part of that journey, is to adopt new technologies that will advance the care we are able to provide to our community,” said Paul Hiltz, President & CEO, NCH Healthcare System. “The new Ceribell EEG provides our medical team with the latest diagnostic technology needed to make the most informed treatment decision as quickly as possible to save brain function in our patients who may be experiencing these invisible seizures.”
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