Application of frontal electroencephalogram in assessment of anxiety， depression，and sleep quality in adolescents with emotional disorders
10.11886/scjsws20250910002
- VernacularTitle:额叶脑电图在青少年情绪障碍患者焦虑抑郁情绪和睡眠质量评估中的应用
- Author:
Ying YANG
1
;
Haiting XU
2
;
Weigang PAN
2
;
Xinpeng XU
2
;
Siyuan LIU
1
;
Xiaohong LI
2
Author Information
1. Beijing Anding Hospital， Capital Medical University， National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders， Beijing Key Laboratory of Mental Disorders， Beijing 100088， China
2. Beijing Huilongguan Hospital， Capital Medical University， Beijing 100096， China
- Publication Type:Journal Article
- Keywords:
Adolescents;
Emotional disorders;
Frontal electroencephalography;
Anxiety;
Depression;
Sleep quality
- From:
Sichuan Mental Health
2026;39(2):112-118
- CountryChina
- Language:Chinese
-
Abstract:
BackgroundEmotional disorders in adolescents have emerged as a prominent issue in recent years. Current mainstream clinical assessment approaches for such conditions predominantly rely on interviews and rating scales， which are limited by inherent drawbacks such as high subjectivity and recall bias. Accordingly， there exists an urgent clinical need for the development of objective， quantifiable auxiliary diagnostic tools.In previous studies， frontal electroencephalography （EEG） has demonstrated significant value in assessing depressive and anxiety. However， the lack of standardized quantitative metrics and intuitive visual analytical approaches has severely restricted clinical interpretability of EEG data and diminished patient engagement. To address these key limitations， the present study proposes an innovative analytical framework that converts frontal EEG signals into quantifiable visual metrics to enhance clinical comprehension and acceptance. ObjectiveTo explore the value of frontal EEG in assessing anxiety， depression， and sleep quality in adolescents with emotional disorders， with the aim of providing objective auxiliary tools for clinical diagnosis and assessment of adolescents with emotional disorders. MethodsThis cross-sectional study recruited 105 adolescents aged 12-18 years who visited the outpatient department of a specialized mental hospital in Beijing from April 2023 to April 2024. All participants met the diagnostic criteria for mood （affective） disorders or anxiety disorders in the International Classification of Diseases， tenth edition （ICD-10）. Frontal EEG signals were collected within a big data analytics-driven framework and further processed by EEG system to generate six quantitative cerebral function indices， namely brain load， tension and excitement， emotional stress， sleepiness index， cerebral vitality， and cerebral fatigue. In addition， validated standardized scales， including the Self-rating Anxiety Scale （SAS）， the Self-rating Depression Scale （SDS）， and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index （PSQI）， were administered for anxiety， depressive symptoms， and sleep quality， respectively. ResultsIn adolescent patients with emotional disorders， the SAS score exhibited significant positive correlations with brain load （rs=0.328， P<0.01）， emotional stress （rs=0.341， P<0.01）， and cerebral fatigue （rs=0.286， P<0.01）. The SDS score was positively correlated with brain load （rs=0.275， P<0.01）， emotional stress （rs=0.241， P<0.05）， and cerebral fatigue （rs=0.311， P<0.01）， while showing a significant negative correlation with cerebral vitality （rs=-0.212， P<0.05）. Additionally， the PSQI total score demonstrated positive correlations with brain load （rs=0.340， P<0.01）， emotional stress （rs=0.322， P<0.01）， and cerebral fatigue （rs=0.229， P<0.05）. ConclusionFrontal EEG-derived indices， including brain load， emotional stress， cerebral fatigue and cerebral vitality， may serve as objective markers for reflecting anxiety， depression， and sleep quality in adolescents with emotional disorders. ［Funded by Beijing High level Innovation and Entrepreneurship Talent Support Program （number， 202504841041）； Horizontal Joint Project］
