What Is a qEEG Brain Map?

A classic EEG records the brain’s electrical activity as curves. A qEEG goes one step further: it processes these signals computationally and compares them against the values of many healthy people (a normative database). This makes visible where your brain activity deviates from the average: for example too much or too little activity in certain regions, or an unfavourable cooperation between areas.

The result is an intuitive "map". It is the starting point for an individual plan. Everything about the measurement is on our Diagnostics page and the method page qEEG brain mapping.

A qEEG can reveal patterns linked to certain complaints, for example:

• regions with strikingly high or low activity,
• an unfavourable balance between tension and calm,
• hints about the load on individual brain networks.

These patterns help plan a treatment precisely, for instance which region makes sense for rTMS, or what a neurofeedback training targets. Important: a qEEG does not establish a psychiatric diagnosis. It is one building block a physician interprets.

• Preparation. You arrive with clean, product-free hair. A cap with sensors is placed, painless, no current.
• Measurement. You sit calmly, usually with eyes closed and open, sometimes during a simple task. The recording itself often takes just 15–30 minutes.
• Analysis. The data are compared with the normative database and turned into the map.
• Discussion. A physician explains the results and derives an individual plan from them.

A detailed step-by-step description is in How a qEEG appointment works. The qEEG is part of our multimodal approach, more on the Diagnostics page.

A qEEG is powerful, but never meaningful on its own. With us it is one of several building blocks: where needed, we include imaging (e.g. MRI findings to rule out structural causes), a functional and neurological examination, clinical questionnaires and laboratory values. Only a physician brings these levels together into a coherent picture.

From this overall picture the individual programme emerges, rather than "one device for everyone". This avoids false conclusions from a single measurement.

The qEEG is a valuable but not almighty tool. The scientific appraisal of individual qEEG applications varies, and a qEEG alone does not "prove" a condition. Its value lies in making treatments more individual and transparent and in keeping progress measurable.

That is why we use it as a diagnostic building block, not a diagnosis machine. How we handle evidence is described under Science & Studies.

If you want to know whether a qEEG might reveal something about your complaints, the best starting point is the free initial consultation: there we clarify whether your question needs a qEEG or whether the assessment can do without one. For a first, non-binding impression of your most-taxed networks, try the Brain Network Analysis; it is an orientation tool, not a diagnosis, and no substitute for a medical conversation.