Non-invasive systems and methods to detect cortical spreading depression for the detection and assessment of brain injury and concussion

A system for detecting concussion-based cortical spreading depression n (CSD) non-invasively in a subject, the system, comprising:

• a portable, instrumented head-mountable detection unit comprising a plurality of scalp surface DC-EEG electrodes configured in a high density electrode array, said plurality of scalp surface DC-EEG electrodes spaced between about 0.5 cm and about 1.5 cm apart from one another and configured to detect a set of real-time scalp DC electrical potential signals non-invasively from a brain area of the subject and to transmit the real-time scalp DC electrical potential signals to an amplifier unit configured to amplify the detected electrical potential signals, said portable, instrumented head-mountable detection unit configured to be placed on a surface of a scalp area of the subject;
• and
• a computing device to detect the presence of the concussion-based CSD, said computing device comprised of a processing unit which includes one or more processors and a non-transitory computer-readable memory containing programming instructions that, when executed, causes the processing unit to:
• receive the amplified electrical potential signals and determine, for each received signal whether the signal corresponds to an electrode placed above a normal cortex area of the subject or above a concussion-based CSD cortex area of the subject;
• determine whether electrode voltages indicate a depression in a voltage level among a set of adjacent electrodes in one of the areas, and if so, determine whether the depression corresponds to electrodes above the normal cortex area or above the cortex area representing the concussion-based CSD cortex area of the subject;
• and
• output a report indicating a level of the depression and the area to which the depression corresponds.

A method of detecting an acute neurological injury-based cortical spreading depression and peri-infarct depolarization (CSD/PID) non-invasively in a subject, the method comprising:

• using a portable, instrumented head-mountable detection unit comprising a plurality of scalp surface DC-EEG electrodes configured in a high density electrode array spaced between about 0.5 cm and about 1.5 cm apart from one another to detect a set of real-time scalp DC electrical potential signals non-invasively from a brain area of the subject and to transmit the real-time scalp DC electrical potential signals to an amplifier unit configured to amplify the detected electrical potential signals, said portable, instrumented head-mountable detection unit placed on a surface of a scalp area of the subject;
• using a computing device to detect the presence of the acute neurological injury-based CSD/PID, said computing device comprised of a processing unit which includes one or more processors and a computer-readable memory containing programming instructions that, when executed, cause the processing unit to receive the amplified electrical potential signals to implement the programming instructions to determine that values of a first set of the electrical potential signals corresponding to a first portion of the brain area, representing an acute neurological injury-based CSD/PID, are depressed as compared to values of a second and third set of the electrical potential signals corresponding to a second portion of brain area, representing ischemic brain, and third portion, representing normal brain;
• and
• generating an output in response to the determining step, said output indicating that the subject is experiencing an acute neurological injury-based CSD/PID.

A system for detecting an acute neurological injury-based cortical spreading depression and peri-infarct depolarization (CSD/PID) non-invasively in a subject, the system comprising:

• a portable, instrumented head-mountable detection unit comprising a plurality of scalp surface DC-EEG electrodes configured in a high density electrode array, said plurality of scalp surface DC-EEG electrodes spaced between about 0.5 cm and about 1.5 cm apart from one another and configured to detect a set of real-time scalp DC electrical potential signals non-invasively from a brain area of the subject and to transmit the real-time scalp DC electrical potential signals to an amplifier unit configured to amplify the detected electrical potential signals, said portable, instrumented head-mountable detection unit configured to be placed on a surface of a scalp area of the subject;
• and
• a computing device to detect the presence of the acute neurological injury-based CSD/PID, said computing device comprised of a processing unit which includes one or more processors and a non-transitory computer-readable memory containing programming instructions that, when executed, causes the processing unit to:
• receive the amplified electrical potential signals and determine, for each received signal whether the signal corresponds to an electrode placed above a normal cortex area of the subject or above an ischemic cortex area of the subject or above an area of cortex that represents an acute neurological injury-based CSD/PID;
• determine whether electrode voltages indicate a depression in a voltage level among a set of adjacent electrodes above one of the areas, and if so, determine whether the depression corresponds to electrodes above the normal cortex area or above the ischemic cortex area or above the area of cortex that represents an acute neurological injury-based CSD/PID;
• and
• output a report indicating a level of the depression and the area to which the depression corresponds.