Doody Review Services
Reviewer:Jennifer L Hopp, MD(University of Maryland School of Medicine)
Description:This interactive EEG DVD simulates a real-life EEG reading session with clear EEG images and associated cases. A keyword index and search engine allow flexibility in the ways the DVD can be used.
Purpose:This material is well suited for a DVD format, as the majority of EEGs are now collected and read in a digital format. The ability to collect a large library of records for self-teaching and review is invaluable in the academic setting. This DVD allows users to link to additional reading and has flexibility for use at a resident or fellow level.
Audience:This program is targeted to neurologists in training as well as neurologists in practice. Specifically, the DVD seems best suited to those neurologists without prior training in EEG and meets the needs of this audience.
Features:The DVD includes over 200 clinical cases and over 450 EEGs. The format simulates an EEG reading session with associated audiovisual content and text for each case. The DVD is easy to install and use. It is particularly important, though, to proceed through the menu and the "how to use this program" section, as the DVD has several formats for use and this will help the user to navigate with greater ease. Some of the highlights include the flexibility in the ways the DVD can be used. The DVD "remembers" which cases have been reviewed so that there isn't a great deal of repetition, and the user can select similar cases for review for comparison during self-study. In addition, the keyword search allows the user to use the DVD more like astandard EEG atlas to find examples while reading EEGs in the lab. A quiz can be used for self-assessment. Finally, the format allows users to find cases at random, a unique feature not available in a text atlas, and allows for greater flexibility in self-teaching. The bibliography linked to each case is particularly helpful in self-teaching. Of note, the DVD is linked with CME information and has credit associated with completion of the activity evaluation form linked as a PDF file. The audio component of the EEG cases can be useful, but may not be necessary for every user. In particular, for self-study, this feature may need to be muted or turned off to allow study at the pace of the user.
Assessment:Digital EEG on DVD is a relatively new format for a teaching tool in neurophysiology, and EEG inherently lends itself well to this format. There is always a need for additional examples of EEG in teaching and education of residents and fellows and this DVD fills a void in this area. This DVD is flexible enough to allow both the ability to pull up an example of a finding through the keyword search or to allow self-teaching through the case format. This is an invaluable tool in the academic setting as well as for review.
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